MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Alejandro Garnacho scored Manchester United's second goal, sitting on a billboard and recommending Rasmus Hoglund and Kobe Maino to come and sit next to him.
It was a great sight for cheering home fans at Old Trafford: 21-year-old Hoglund, 19-year-old Jarnacho and 18-year-old Maino, sitting in a queue and smiling.
The future may be bright for United after all.
Hoglund celebrated his 21st birthday by scoring for the fourth consecutive league match, and Jarnacho also scored two goals to lead United to a 3-0 victory over West Ham in the English Premier League on Sunday, achieving their second victory in three days.
United jumped above West Ham to sixth in the standings, but there is still a six-point gap over Tottenham in fifth, which could be enough to secure a Champions League qualification spot for next season.
United must believe they can get there.
Especially with Hoglund finally reaching such a strong level of scoring.
The Danish striker failed to find the back of the net in his first 14 Premier League matches after joining from Atalanta in the summer transfer window. Now he couldn't stop scoring, and his last goal came in the 23rd minute when he received the ball after a timely interception by Casemiro in midfield, created some space for himself on the edge of the box and fired a right-footed shot into the bottom corner. .
Argentine international player Jarnacho doubled the lead in the 49th minute with a shot that hit goalkeeper Nayef Aguiard and substitute goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski, who replaced Alphonse Areola after suffering a head blow. The winger's celebration alongside Hoglund and Maino, the young midfielder who scored the late winner at Wolves on Thursday, showcased three players United could rely on for years to come.
Garnacho rounded off the win by scoring on the counter-attack in the 84th minute after substitute Scott McTominay had snatched the ball away from Kalvin Phillips, a loan signing from Manchester City who also came off the bench and has not looked up to speed after a short time in the game this season.
___
AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Associated Press
