"We are together, we are united" - Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag weighs in on the Alejandro Garnacho fiasco after deleted tweet incident
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has offered his support to winger Alejandro Garnacho. This comes after it was announced that the Argentinian could face punishment from the FA after a controversial tweet.
In a now-deleted post on Twitter, the attacker used gorilla emojis in reference to keeper Andre Onana. Speaking ahead of the side's clash against Manchester City, ten Hag stated (via press conference):
"Not in this moment, we are talking with the FA, what you see, I can confirm that and I want to emphasise we are together, we are united, you saw that with the post of Andre."
The Cameroon international came in support of his teammate as well. In a story on Instagram, he stated that he knew the true intentions behind the message and hoped there would be no further action.
He said (via his official Instagram account):
"People cannot choose what I should be offended by. I know exactly what [Garnacho] meant: Power and strength.
"This matter should go no further."
Notably, a similar incident had taken place at the club in November 2020 when star forward Edinson Cavani had posted a message on his social media replying to a congratulatory message using the word 'neg**to.' The FA had banned him for three games for breaching FA Rule E3. It remains to be seen if Garnacho would receive a similar punishment.
Erik ten Hag backs Manchester United star despite tough start
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag stated that he would continue to back struggling goalkeeper Andre Onana. Speaking ahead of the side's Premier League clash against Manchester City, the Dutchman opened up on the expectations placed on the former Inter Milan and Ajax custodian.
He said (via press conference):
"You give him the standards and also the expectations, but also it’s about getting to the same level. He has high expectations from himself. We give him the confidence, look what you did in the past for great clubs in great leagues, you have the ability and the skills. The last two games were good progress, now we have to keep this going. It’s very good but at Manchester United good is not good enough."
Onana was brought in from Inter Milan last summer for €50 million. He replaced long-time keeper David de Gea but has struggled since the campaign began. Notably, he made high-profile errors in Champions League games against Bayern Munich and Galatasaray.
However, he silenced his critics with a good performance against FC Copenhagen in the Champions League, saving a penalty late in the game to hand United their first win in Europe this season. Overall, he has played 13 games across competitions and kept four clean sheets, conceding 20 goals.