Alejandro Garnacho lauds Manchester United teammate after their 3-2 win over Aston Villa

Alejandro Garnacho praised Manchester United teammate Kobbie Mainoo after their team's 3-2 Premier League win against Aston Villa on Boxing Day (26 December).

The Red Devils were down 2-0 within the first half hour after goals from John McGinn (21') and Leander Dendoncker (26'). Garnacho had a goal ruled out early in the second half.

The Argentine winger nevertheless got his name on the scoresheet in the 59th minute after some neat work from Marcus Rashford down the left flank. He then scored his second, albeit via a deflection, to draw his team level with 19 minutes left on the clock.

Rasmus Hojlund then scored the winner eight minutes from time to register a famous win for the hosts at Old Trafford. But apart from the goal-scorers, Maino was a standout performer in the middle of the park.

The 18-year-old started in midfield alongside Christian Eriksen and was tasked with doing the dirty work off the ball. He was subbed off just before Hojlund's goal and had a solid game, winning five of his six aerial duels, managing two recoveries and three clearances.

After the game, Garnacho took to his social media account to reshare Mainoo's Instagram post, which featured the two of them together, and captioned his story:

"What a player [heart emoji]"

Mainoo seems to be playing at a level beyond his years and Erik ten Hag seems to trust the Englishman in his first team set-up. Sofyan Amrabat was ruled out of the Villa clash with a minor injury, as per ESPN's Rob Dawson.

Casemiro is also out with injury and Ten Hag has said the Brazilian superstar may only return mid-January. It could mean more first-team minutes for Mainoo, who has now racked up seven appearances across competitions already this season.

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Manchester United captain speaks on Rasmus Hojlund breaking PL duck

Rasmus Hojlund took 15 Premier League games to score his first goal in the competition for Manchester United.

Speaking after the game, Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes commented on the goal and told Amazon Prime (h/t BBC):

"Obviously we were really happy for Rasmus to get that first [league] goal, but not only for him, the fact it made the score 3-2 as well because we need the three points. He needs to score goals, he is eager to do it."

The Dane's goal came at a crucial juncture in the game against Aston Villa, as it helped them complete their comeback. He found himself in a good position inside the box after a set-piece and placed the ball into the far left corner.

Hojlund's shot hit the post before finding its way inside Emiliano Martinez's net, ensuring that the £72 million summer signing from Atalanta was off the mark in the league.