Erik ten Hag reportedly held talks with Alejandro Garnacho after the Manchester United star liked two social media posts criticizing his manager.
Garnacho were shocked at half-time as the Red Devils failed to win in the league for the fourth consecutive game, in a 2-2 draw at Bournemouth.
Tweets from Mark Goldbridge, presenter of renowned fan channel United Stand, criticized Ten Hag for his decision to withdraw Garnacho and for suggesting that the Argentine’s work rate was a reason for removing him during a post-match interview.
Garnacho, who has more than 700,000 followers on X, was seen liking both of Goldbridge’s tweets, before later deleting them.
He Manchester Evening News They have now reported that Ten Hag has had private conversations with the 19-year-old about his social media activity.
Erik ten Hag (left) reportedly held conversations with Alejandro Garnacho (right) about his social media activity, after the forward liked posts criticizing the Manchester United manager.
Garnacho liked tweets from renowned United fan Mark Goldbridge, who criticized both Ten Hag’s decision to withdraw Garnacho and his post-match comments about him.
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A club spokesperson reportedly said the matter was dealt with internally, but did not clarify whether he had been punished for similar incidents.
Speaking about his decision to replace Garnacho at half-time on Saturday, Ten Hag seemed to imply that the striker did not work hard enough.
‘In the second half there were two things,” he said. ‘Keep the formation in possession and don’t be erratic.
‘Because we are going to create and we have given up a lot of space. And the second thing is to do your job on the defensive side.
“It is the truth that at this moment, with all the problems we have, we play at our level and we can play very well at our level.”
Taking to social media midway through the second half, Goldbridge tweeted: “Garnacho has been one of our best players this season.
“Bad first half, but taking him out at half-time and keeping him as a problem is a joke.” Many have done much worse week after week and are still out there.
Then, posting again after Ten Hag’s comments, he added: “Ten Hag subtly put the blame on Garnacho in the post-match press conference…not a good idea to throw a 19 year old under the bus who has really met your expectations this season.”
Garnacho also took to Instagram to seemingly express his exasperation with Ten Hag.
Ten Hag appeared to suggest that Garnacho did not work hard enough before being pulled off at half-time.
Jadon Sancho effectively called Ten Hag a liar on the same social media platform earlier this season, before being loaned to former club Borussia Dortmund in January.
Goldbridge is a renowned United fan and expressed his frustration with Ten Hag after the game.
“But it is clear that he is afraid of upsetting those who earn the most.”
The Argentinian’s frustrations were also made clear when he posted a photo of himself looking dejected during the match on his Instagram story.
In a difficult season, Garnacho has been one of United’s few bright sparks.
He has scored nine goals and assisted four times in his 42 appearances in all competitions.
It is not the first time that a United player’s activity on social media has become an issue for the club and manager Erik ten Hag.
Jadon Sancho effectively called the Dutchman a liar for claiming he had not performed well in training.
The England international was then exiled from United’s first team and loaned to former club Borussia Dortmund in January.