Alejandro Garnacho could make his Chelsea debut this weekend.
The Argentine made his move £40million from Manchester United to Chelsea just before the transfer window closed, and has already been seen watching his new team at Stamford Bridge.
But now that the international break is over, it could be time for Garnacho to finally wear the Chelsea blue on the pitch. Chelsea have spent a lot of money over the past few years bolstering their attack. Which has led many to question where Garnacho will fit in.
In this article, we’ll cover:
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What Garnacho brings to the table
Garnacho has got four seasons under his belt as a Manchester United first-team option. Although, only two of those have been as a consistent starter. During that time, the Argentine played 93 times in the Premier League, amassing 5,341 minutes. That’s an average of 57.43 minutes per match.
Garnacho has been directly involved in 24 goals in the Premier League over that time, scoring 16 and providing eight assists. While that may not sound too impressive, it works out to 0.40 direct goal involvements per 90 minutes.
A third of those goal involvements came last season, with Garnacho scoring six goals and providing two assists. These came at 0.25 goals and 0.08 assists per 90. Overall, only two Man Utd players scored more league goals than Garnacho last season — Bruno Fernandes and Amad Diallo (both eight). He also ranked fourth for assists. It really was a poor season for Man Utd all-round.
Goal threat
Garnacho’s six goals last season came from 8.07 Expected Goals. And it doesn’t take a maths genius to work out his underperformance of 2.07. But it’s worth noting some extra context.
As shown by the shot map above, a good chunk of Garnacho’s shots came from the left side of the box. So his xG would have been boosted by volume — testing his luck from less-effective positions. Of Garnacho’s 84 shots across the season, 60 had an xG of 0.1 or lower. And if we lower the benchmark even more, 41 of Garnacho’s shots had an xG of below 0.05.
That will have had a similar effect on Garnacho’s shot placement. The Argentine’s 8.07 xG last season dropped to 6.86 post-shot xG. He was lowering his chances of scoring based on where he was placing his shots.
Creativity
Creatively, Garnacho’s two assists came from an Expected Assists total of 4.7. While that is a difference of -2.7, a drop off here isn’t usually the fault of the creator. A player could be laying off amazing chances to a teammate, who misses the opportunity.
Garnacho’s two league assists in 2024-25 came from xAs of 0.34 and 0.24, against Fulham and Brentford, respectively. But he also had a chance created with an xA of 0.64 wasted against West Ham United. Even in the game against Brentford in which Garnacho assisted, the Argentine had a better chance with 0.44 xA not scored.
Overall, Garnacho created 37 chances in the Premier League last season, the third-most among Man Utd players. He also ranked third among Red Devils players for his four big chances created.
Chelsea’s attacking options
On paper, it looked as though Chelsea had a lot of attacking options. But they were thin on the wings. And that’s why they made the move for Garnacho.
With Liam Delap out injured, Joao Pedro will play up front. Which opens a spot for Cole Palmer as the No.10. And with Palmer through the middle, Pedro Neto will likely play on the right — ahead of Estevao. Which leaves Garnacho to battle with Jamie Gittens for the left-wing role.
Gittens is yet to prove himself as a starter for Chelsea, so it’s very likely that Garnacho will get a chance almost immediately. And Chelsea fans will know a little bit about what Garnacho can do. The Argentine has scored two goals and provided one assist against Chelsea, bagging a brace at Stamford Bridge in 2023-24. Those goal involvements all came with Garnacho playing on the left wing, too.
Why Garnacho will star at Chelsea
Garnacho and Gittens are similar players in terms of shot-taking, and they’re both replacements for Noni Madueke in that regard. The now-Arsenal man averaged 2.6 shots (excluding blocks) per 90 in the league last season, something Chelsea need to replicate. Even if he was accurate with 56.14% of them. Garnacho averaged 2.3 shots (excluding blocks) per 90 in the league last season, the best of Chelsea’s current wing options. He places higher than Gittens’ 1.8 in the Bundesliga.
Garnacho’s accuracy isn’t much worse than Madueke’s either, at 54.55% — with 1.3 shots on target per 90. It’s a similar story for chance creation. Garnacho’s 1.6 chances created per 90 is actually higher than Madueke’s 1.4 last season. Neto (1.9) fared better in the Premier League, while Estevao (2.5) starred in his time with Palmeiras. So Chelsea are getting a good enough replacement for Madueke.
“When we are looking for a winger, we are looking for someone who is good one-vs-one and who can attack and create something,” Enzo Maresca said after Garnacho’s signing was announced.
“Jamie Gittens is that profile, and we will see with Garnacho. He is a good winger in one-vs-one and he can create things. This is the way I see things.”
With fresh start, a new manager and a rising — and functioning — squad, Garnacho can definitely grow as a player.