The word from Manchester United is Alejandro Garnacho is still nervous around the media. He did not look it when he conducted a post-match interview on the pitch on Saturday.
Garnacho ended it by clutching the man of the match award, turning to the Stretford End and raising his hands to milk the acclaim of the crowd. He has been doing that for nearly two years.
The Stretford End sang "Viva Garnacho" as United celebrated their FA Youth Cup triumph in May 2022. Cristiano Ronaldo was approaching the beginning of the end of his homecoming at United and the chant signalled a gradual changing of the guard.
In the Old Trafford dressing room before the final against Nottingham Forest, a motivational message Ronaldo had recorded was played to the United youngsters. With the game deadlocked at 1-1, the 17-year-old Garnacho made it 2-1 and he killed the contest with a second goal.
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Hours before it emerged Ronaldo had conducted an unauthorised and incendiary interview with Talk TV, Garnacho cutely prodded in an added-time winner at Fulham in November 2022. It was at the same Putney End nearly 16 years earlier that Ronaldo secured a memorable victory.
The parallels between the Iberians continue. As Ronaldo's old chant goes, Garnacho can play on the left and play on the right. He made Everton's defenders look "s---e" by procuring two penalties. Four Fulham players were booked for fouling Garnacho a fortnight earlier.
Like a teenage Ronaldo, the 19-year-old Garnacho is poised to plant the Sir Matt Busby statue on display in his lounge. He has started in the past 25 United matches and avoided injury all season. Ronaldo earned 40 starts in his second season in Manchester and Garnacho could come in just short of that with 38.
Garnacho has the character to match the quality. He never recovered from botching a breakaway on his first derby start at the Etihad, where he was tepid in the 3-1 loss. Six days later, he was United's de facto matchwinner against Everton.
Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni dropped Garnacho in November, citing his form. In the first match after the internationals, Garnacho executed a bicycle kick to trump Wayne Rooney's. A recall beckons for the friendlies against El Salvador and Costa Rica later this month.
A right-footed left winger was not a pressing area to target in 2020 but Garnacho has seen off Jadon Sancho, Anthony Elanga and Anthony Martial. He has done Marcus Rashford a favour by hitting the ground running on the right flank, where Garnacho has started in nine of the past 13 games.
Garnacho's development at United is ahead of Ronaldo's as a teenager. The longest run a teenage Ronaldo had as a starter for United was eight games and the last fell on his 20th birthday against Birmingham City in February 2005. United have a minimum 11 games left this term and Garnacho is destined to start in all of them, provided he remains fit.
He has played 73 times for United. Coincidentally, that is the same number of appearances Ronaldo managed as a teenager. Garnacho is on 12 goals and Ronaldo had 10, his tally boosted by an unforgettable double in United's last-ever victory at Highbury four days before his 20th birthday.
One of the curious criticisms of Ronaldo during his early years at United was he struggled against the elite. Before his Highbury heroics, his coming-of-age came against the Arsenal 'invincibles' United vanquished in an uproarious FA Cup semi-final at Villa Park in 2004.
David Walsh wrote in The Sunday Times: "Ronaldo, especially, was terrific. He has pace, blinding skill and a precious ability to go past players."
“Fantastic performance,” Sir Alex Ferguson beamed afterwards. “The boy is a marvellous player."
Garnacho's Kryptonite is clear goalscoring opportunities and he wasted two more against Everton either side of the interval. That is forgivable at 19. Ronaldo hit the woodwork a luckless number of times before he developed into a prolific goalscorer and Garnacho's profligacy has seldom cost United. West Ham away two days before Christmas is the exception.
Garnacho was on target in the Elland Road and Istanbul bear pits, he sparked the comeback against Aston Villa on Boxing Day and he already has two Fergie Time winners two his name. His dozen goals consist of winners, clinchers and equalisers.
Ronaldo, at 19, had a starring role in the one-sided 2004 FA Cup final. He was initially more prolific for Portugal, his debut coming four days after his captivating bow for United against Bolton. Ronaldo started in five of Portugal's seven duels during the 2004 European Championship on home soil.
Ronaldo already had a developmental season at Sporting Lisbon when he entered a dressing room of champions with personalities as forceful as Roy Keane, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and Gary Neville. Garnacho had Martial staring him down, vainly attempting to keep him in his lane.
So at 19, the wingers whose United careers began 19 years apart have won a domestic cup in their first season and have the '7' affixed to their shirt. Erik ten Hag considered upgrading Garnacho to that number in the summer and the Argentinian deserves the seven outright next season.
One suspects Garnacho would not be nervous about inheriting it.
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