Manchester United’s summer recruit, Manuel Ugarte, is feeling ‘unhappy’ and already ‘regretting’ his move from PSG to the Premier League club.
The Red Devils invested approximately £185m this summer to bring in Ugarte, Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro, Matthijs de Ligt, and Noussair Mazraoui.
One of their main goals this summer was to secure a defensive midfielder, and they brought in Ugarte from Ligue 1 powerhouse PSG.
Man Utd were initially priced out of signing Ugarte, but co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his recruitment team stood their ground, eventually securing a deal worth £42m upfront, plus add-ons, on deadline day.
Ugarte was suggested as a potential long-term successor to Casemiro, but the Uruguay international has started just one Premier League match and was left as an unused substitute in last weekend’s game against Aston Villa.
Earlier this week, Dutch icon Marco van Basten stated that Ugarte is “not even worth a quarter” of the amount Manchester United paid for him during the summer.
Van Basten said: “Ugarte, who cost £50 million, you think, ‘how do you even think about paying so much money for that?’ That is really bizarre.”
He added: “It’s true that the big clubs, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester City, Arsenal, they get the better ones, and he [Erik ten Hag] always comes with second-rate players. That team has not got better.
“He remains a good trainer but if you see the purchasing policy and those boys which were then bought for 700 million, I don’t see any return on that, they’re still poorly organised.
“There is no star walking around who organizes it, who leads, none. A few years ago Marcus Rashford was a great player, he can’t do anything about this any more, it’s unbelievable. It’s strange for that a boy who was a world star years ago.”
Ugarte Frustrated by Limited Involvement at Manchester United
A report from Spain suggests that Ugarte “regrets joining Manchester United in the summer” and is already “re-evaluating his decision” to move to the Premier League club.
Ugarte is reportedly unhappy at Manchester United due to his limited involvement, which has frustrated the defensive midfielder.
‘Manuel Ugarte appears to be reconsidering his decision to join Manchester United in the last summer transfer window. The Uruguayan midfielder is not having the experience he expected with Erik Ten Hag as his new coach. Although he was expected to have an important role in the team, his participation has been much more limited than anticipated, generating frustration in the player.
Ugarte has played only 256 minutes across five matches so far, a relatively small amount for a player who was signed for 50 million euros and agreed to a contract lasting until 2029. While this secures his long-term future at the club, it doesn’t eliminate the possibility of him leaving in the near future.
The fact that Ugarte was left as a substitute in the recent match against Aston Villa — a game in which Dutch coach Erik ten Hag was under significant pressure to secure a positive result to preserve his position at Old Trafford — suggests that the manager may not have full confidence in the Uruguayan midfielder. This decision has only added to the growing frustration for Ugarte, who, after joining Manchester United with high expectations, is unwilling to settle for a backup role. With his ambitions for a more prominent spot in the starting lineup, Ugarte is reportedly determined not to return to being a mere fill-in player, raising questions about his future at the club.
‘This has increased Ugarte’s dissatisfaction, who could be reconsidering his future if he does not see significant changes in his situation within the team in the short term. For a player who arrived with great expectations, the reality at Manchester United is far from what he had imagined.’
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