It was revealed this week that Manchester United are willing to listen to offers for midfielder James Garner, with the club looking for a fee of around £15million.
The 21-year-old signed a contract extension at the club only 12 months ago before he went out on loan to Nottingham Forest. There, he became a key cog in Steve Cooper’s side, racking up 41 league appearances - only one midfielder at the club featured more - and helping them secure promotion via the playoffs.
Many expected the midfielder to kick on at United this season, and he himself discussed his own ambitions to ‘make his mark’ earlier in the summer.
Following England’s U21 clash against Slovenia in June, Garner stated: "I’m not too sure (what will happen), personally. I’ve not had much time to think. I’ve gone from Championship football straight to international football; I’ve not really had a breather or time to think.
“But that’s what I’d like to do; go on pre-season and impress, it’s all up to me, really. It’s down to me as a player to impress him (Erik ten Hag) and hopefully make a mark.”
Garner’s departure should recoup funds to go towards the purchase of fellow midfielder Adrien Rabiot. An initial £15m fee has been agreed with Juventus to sign the 27-year-old, however, discussions around personal terms are still ongoing.
Although Rabiot boasts the more impressive CV, the decision to move out Garner in place of the Frenchman does feel an illogical one.
Garner is six years his junior, English, has experience in the country and is on a far lower wage than what Rabiot will come in on. Furthermore, both players are very similar and there’s even a case to be made Garner could have a potential ceiling that is just as high.
He's very press resistant thanks to his great tight control and clever off-the-ball moment. Garner is also an exquisite passer of the ball, perhaps one of the best across the whole Championship last season.
His basic underlying numbers might not initially highlight this. For example, his pass success rate of 82 per cent, according to Wyscout, ranked the lowest of the all Forest central midfielders who played over 500 league minutes last season.
Yet that can be explained by the bravery the midfielder shows in possession. He’ll often bypass short and safe passes to instead attempt more high-risk-high-reward penetrative balls through the lines.
He ranked top from that same group of Forest midfielders for progressive passes last season (4.9 per 90). He also topped the club’s midfield rankings in terms of progressive carries too.
What’s interesting is Garner’s average in terms of progressive passes was actually identical to Rabiot’s for Juventus in Serie A last season, while there wasn’t much between the two in terms of pass success rates either (Rabiot: 86 per cent).
Beyond this, both players have similar physical profiles. Each stand at over 6ft, although Rabiot is marginally taller and a bit stronger, which would have played a role in him enjoying a better success rate (65 per cent) in terms of defensive duels last season. Again though, the difference wasn’t much - Garner 60 per cent.
An obvious caveat to the above is that Italy’s top tier trumps the Championship in terms of quality. Rabiot’s experience at higher levels, plus his age, means he’s a better well-rounded midfielder than Garner, there’s no doubt about that.
Yet there’s a reasonable case to be made that the gap between the two wouldn’t be big enough to warrant the extra cost in terms of wages, and United’s decision to allow Garner to leave, potentially to a league rival, could be another in a long list that they come to regret.
