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Alejandro Garnacho has been in fine form for Chelsea in recent weeks, but Ben Foster has questioned how long the 21-year-old can maintain his current level of performance.
Questions have been highlighted regarding whether Alejandro Garnacho can maintain his excellent form for Chelsea despite John Terry lauding his "petrifying" ability.
The 21-year-old suffered a difficult beginning to the campaign after being relegated to the bench for two of the Blues' opening five fixtures across all competitions. However, the Argentine has subsequently cemented his place as Enzo Maresca's preferred left winger, scoring twice and registering two assists in his last four outings.
Garnacho has received acclaim for his recent displays, with Chelsea legend Terry celebrating his impressive showing in last Saturday's 3-0 win over Wolves, where he laid on assists for both Malo Gusto and Pedro Neto.
The former England skipper said: "[It's] absolutely petrifying as a defender when you're facing someone that quick and that direct. He gives us something the other wingers don't as well. That's what you want to see as a Chelsea fan - players like that beating players. It doesn't always have to be with loads of skill."
Garnacho's improvement in form could potentially leave Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim red-faced after sanctioning his £40million departure from Old Trafford to Chelsea at the end of August. The transfer materialised following Garnacho's disagreement with Amorim regarding his restricted playing time in the Europa League final.
However, former United and Wrexham goalkeeper Ben Foster has raised questions about how long he can maintain his current level of performance. The retired keeper questioned Garnacho's mentality and suggested he could struggle against superior teams, with several players ready to take his starting place at Chelsea.
Discussing Garnacho's performance against Wolves on his Fozcast podcast, Foster said: "He looked really sharp and looked really nice to be fair. He was really good and maybe he needed that as a little bit of a springboard. But with that Chelsea team, I just don't know who's going to start.
"They've got so many players who can play in those sorts of positions that it's really hard for a player to get a string of games and a run of form. He needs a bit of an arm around him and for someone to go, 'You're going to start the next six games and you're going to be my best player.'
"The ability is there and the talent is there, but I think most of the time it's in his head. He's going to come up against much bigger, better, faster and stronger opposition than Wolves."
While Foster remains uncertain about Garnacho's long-term prospects, Chelsea's head coach was impressed by what he saw against Wolves.
Speaking after the match, Maresca said: "He's doing very well on the ball, but he's doing very, very well off the ball. He knows that to play with us, he has to be good on the ball and off the ball; otherwise, he's not going to play. We are very happy with him at this moment."
Alan Shearer also hailed his performance on Match of the Day, saying: "I think it was his best game today. He caused problems all evening down the left-hand side. Whoever was coming up against him, he had more pace than them.
"He went past them with ease and he was a real threat in putting good balls into the box for his forwards. Of course, they benefited from that. I thought he looked really, really comfortable."
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