Uruguayan midfielder Manuel Ugarte is reportedly traveling to England on Tuesday ahead of his medical with Manchester United, nearing completion on a long-awaited move during a busy summer for the club.
United are expected to pay a transfer fee of €60 million to Paris Saint-Germain for Ugarte’s services, per The Athletic. It’s a deal that reportedly includes an additional €10 million in add-ons and a 10 percent sell-on clause for the French club. The midfielder has been linked to United since the start of the summer but the two clubs reportedly disagreed on the financial structure of the deal for some time. The situation forced United to explore other options like new Fulham signing Sander Berge and re-signing Sofyan Amrabat after spending last season on loan at United.
Erik ten Hag’s side, though, will land their preferred target after a fairly impressive year. He was an important fixture for PSG during the first half of the season before his role dwindled. He bounced back by playing all six games for Uruguay at the Copa America, making the team of the tournament as his national team clinched a third-place finish.
Ugarte would become the latest big signing for United this summer, a list that includes defenders Matthijs de Ligt and Leny Yoro and forward Joshua Zirkzee. The Uruguayan might be one of their most important newcomers this season, though, considering the need he fills as a defensive midfielder.
United struggled in the center of the park for much of last season, appearing unbalanced and creating one disjointed team performance after another during a chaotic campaign. The struggles were incredibly apparent from a defensive standpoint when ten Hag decided a strategy in which the team absorbs pressure from the opposition was the best way forward but came out with mixed results, United finished eighth in the Premier League last season, their lowest-ever Premier League position, conceding 58 goals and ending the campaign with a -1 goal differential. They conceded 680 shots last season along the way, second-most of any Premier League team and behind only relegated side Sheffield United.
It is still early this season, but things may not have improved yet. While they limited Fulham to just two shots on goal and 0.44 expected goals, they still conceded 10 shots during a 1-0 win on opening day and then faced 14 shots and 2.09 expected goals in their 2-1 loss to Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday.
Targeting and signing Ugarte is a smart move from United, who will most likely benefit from his inclusion once he is ready to play. Whether or not he acts like a one-person fix for a big problem, though, is worth following as ten Hag and company target improvement for the 2024-25 campaign.
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