One Manchester United attacker lit up Old Trafford in Sunday's pre-season friendly with Rayo Vallecano, but it was not the returning Cristiano Ronaldo, who played 45 minutes on his return to action.
Alejandro Garnacho was handed the opportunity to impress from the first whistle in the team's final pre-season fixture of the summer, and the 18-year-old made a brilliant impression.
The Argentina Under-20s international showed his fearlessness by continually driving at the Rayo backline, and he was comfortably Man United's most productive forward before leaving the field to huge applause in the 73rd minute of what proved to be a 1-1 draw.
Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag embraced the youngster, clearly impressed by what he had seen, and the Dutchman was full of praise for him when conducting his post-match interview.
"What you want is also a young player who deserves a chance," Ten Hag told MUTV. "We want to give them that chance and he shows himself during pre-season [training] and that is why he came on [started]. He played pretty well and that's hopeful. He is just a teenager but his performance was really good."
Garnacho travelled with the Man United squad on their pre-season tour of Thailand and Australia but did not make a single appearance, while he was also not selected in the squad to face Atletico Madrid on Saturday.
Red Devils goalkeeper Tom Heaton was also full of praise for his teammate following the clash with Rayo.
"I think today there was a few really good performances. I thought Garnacho was outstanding down the left-hand side. So yeah, good for him to get a good run-out," the club's number two goalkeeper told MUTV.
"I'm sure the manager is impressed with him among others, there were plenty of good performances but it's just taking the opportunity when it comes for the young lads."
Garnacho also impressed Ten Hag by reporting early for pre-season duty at the end of June despite not being expected back until July due to his international commitments.
His involvement for Argentina Under-20s in the Toulon Tournament in June meant that the teenager was not due back until July, but he was present on the first day of pre-season training.
Garnacho made two Premier League appearances in the latter stages of the 2021-22 campaign, debuting against Chelsea at the end of April before featuring in Man United's final game of the campaign at Crystal Palace.
The South American starred at Under-18 and Under-23 level last season, including four goals and one assist in Premier League 2, and he netted two late goals as the Red Devils won the FA Youth Cup by beating Nottingham Forest 3-1.
Garnacho, who was named the Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year for 2021-22 due to his impressive form at youth level, joined Man United's Under-18s from Atletico Madrid in October 2020.
According to Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano, Man United are working on a new deal for the teenager, with Ten Hag viewing him as an important player for the future.
"Alejandro has had a fantastic season and really deserves this recognition," head of academy Nick Cox told the club's official website at the end of the 2021-22 campaign. "There have been a number of Under-18s players who have performed exceptionally well throughout the year. Reaching an FA Youth Cup final is a fantastic achievement, so this was not an easy decision to make.
"Alejandro has shown great determination from the day that he arrived here from Spain, in the middle of a pandemic. He has adapted extremely well to life in Manchester and continues to improve on the pitch every day.
"Making his first-team debut last month was the culmination of a great deal of hard work from Alejandro himself, his family and a dedicated group of Academy staff. The call-up that he received from Argentina is another fantastic indicator of the progress he has made this season.
"He remains grounded considering all that he has achieved this year and we know that he will continue to grow within our youth development system."
The Red Devils are believed to be currently assessing what would be best for the attacker this season, either continue his development at Old Trafford or head out on loan.
However, Garnacho is capable of playing a role for Man United's first team this season, with his unpredictability and impressive ball-carrying skills making him a hugely dangerous operator.
There are plenty of players ahead of him in the pecking order at this moment in time, but the Red Devils are hardly blessed with attackers heading towards the start of the campaign, and it is not impossible to imagine him being in the squad against Brighton & Hove Albion on August 7.
Man United will play an awful lot of football between now and the break for the 2022 World Cup due to their involvement in the group stage of the Europa League, and it is certainly not guaranteed that the club will sign the players that they want before the end of the transfer window.
Even if an Antony or a Benjamin Sesko were to arrive in the coming weeks, there should be a role for Garnacho at Old Trafford in the new season, as he could be Ten Hag's joker in the pack. body check tags ::
