When Manchester United officially confirmed that Ruben Amorim would be their new head coach to replace Erik ten Hag last year, there was plenty of optimism.
The Portuguese head coach had just won the league title with Sporting and arrived at Old Trafford as an exciting young manager with a new system for fans to get used to.
His arrival also prompted supporters to wonder whether or not he would look to reunite with prolific centre-forward Viktor Gyokeres to bolster the club’s options at the top end of the pitch.
Manchester United did, reportedly, make contact with Sporting over a potential deal to sign the Swedish forward earlier this summer, only for him to end up at Arsenal.
Whilst the Red Devils were unable to reunite Amorim with Gyokeres this summer, the Portuguese head coach has already had the chance to work with one of his former Sporting stars in Manuel Ugarte.
United signed the Uruguay international from Paris Saint-Germain for an initial fee of £42m last summer, before Amorim arrived, and he has yet to prove his worth.
Why Man United may need to replace Manuel Ugarte
The Red Devils may need to find a replacement for Ugarte before the end of the summer transfer window because he has not proven himself to be a reliable option in the middle of the park.
He is billed as a midfield destroyer who sweeps up in front of the defence. However, he only won 53% of his duels in the Premier League and was dribbled past 1.3 times per game in the division; only Bruno Fernandes (1.4) was dribbled past more per match on average.
This shows that Ugarte did not provide a very effective screen in front of the defence in the top-flight last season, as opposition players found too much joy in running past him, exposing the backline.
On top of that, the 24-year-old defensive midfielder does not offer quality in possession to make up for when his defensive skills are not enough in the middle of the park, as he does not carry an offensive or progressive threat on the ball.
|
24/25 PL |
Ugarte |
Rank vs midfielders |
|---|---|---|
|
Non-penalty goals |
0.05 |
Bottom 41% |
|
xAG |
0.06 |
Bottom 30% |
|
Shot-creating actions |
1.56 |
Bottom 16% |
|
Progressive passes |
3.08 |
Bottom 18% |
|
Progressive carries |
0.81 |
Bottom 23% |
|
Passes into the final third |
2.96 |
Bottom 36% |
|
Passes into the penalty area |
0.45 |
Bottom 20% |
|
Stats via FBref |
||
As you can see in the table above, Ugarte was among the worst performers in the Premier League in midfield when it came to progressing play through passes and carries, or creating and scoring goals.
These statistics suggest that the former Sporting star is not a reliable operator for Amorim because he is suspect defensively and in possession.
United could find a big upgrade on Ugarte, though, as they are reportedly interested in signing another central midfielder from one of their Premier League rivals.
Man Utd in talks with midfield star’s agents
According to Fabrizio Romano, Manchester United are in ongoing talks with the agents of Brighton & Hove Albion defensive midfielder Carlos Baleba.
However, he adds that a deal is complicated and that there is no progress being made at the moment, which does not suggest that a transfer is likely to happen any time soon.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, the reporter said: “Man United still maintain contacts with the agents of Carlos Baleba, contacts are still ongoing, but at the moment, they still believe that the deal is really complicated, is really difficult, so at the moment there is no concrete progress.
“Man United at the moment make their steps, started this week by making an approach to people close to the player, to try to understand the situation, maintain the contacts with the agents of the player, so don’t leave the conversation immediately.”
GIVEMESPORT adds that Brighton will be looking for a fee in the region of the £115m that they raked in from Chelsea for Moises Caicedo in order to let go of Baleba.
This suggests that Manchester United may need to splash out a fee in excess of £100m, breaking their transfer record, to snap the Cameroon international up this summer.
Why Man Utd should sign Carlos Baleba
The Red Devils should be pushing to get a deal over the line for Baleba, if they can avoid the huge fee that it may take, because he would arrive as a big upgrade on Ugarte.
He is already a proven Premier League performer, thanks to his time with Brighton, and would offer more to the team in the middle of the park, as both a defender and a progressive operator in possession.
Baleba won 55% of his duels and was only dribbled past 0.9 times per game in the top-flight last season, which immediately suggests that the left-footed enforcer would be more reliable off the ball in comparison to Ugarte as opposition players find it harder to get the better of him.
The clip above also shows that the Brighton star has more in his arsenal than just defensive qualities. He scored three goals and created three ‘big chances’ in the top-flight, whilst also providing progressive play in build-up.
|
24/25 Premier League (per 90) |
Carlos Baleba |
Manuel Ugarte |
|---|---|---|
|
Non-penalty goals |
0.10 |
0.05 |
|
Shot-creating actions |
2.23 |
1.56 |
|
Progressive passes |
3.99 |
3.08 |
|
Progressive carries |
1.45 |
0.81 |
|
Key passes |
0.71 |
0.50 |
|
Passes into the final third |
3.69 |
2.97 |
|
Passes into the penalty area |
0.78 |
0.45 |
|
Stats via FBref |
||
As you can see in the table above, the Manchester United target outperformed Ugarte in a host of attacking and possession-based metrics in the middle of the park in the Premier League.
These statistics suggest that Baleba, who was hailed as “exceptional” by U23 scout Antonio Mango, would come in as a big upgrade on the United flop because of his ability to influence the game in possession, as well as out of out.
That is alongside also having the potential to be an upgrade on him from a defensive perspective, given that attacking players find it harder to dribble past him or win duels against the 21-year-old titan.
Therefore, signing Baleba would improve Manchester United’s team because he would offer more to the side, as a proven Premier League performer, in all phases of the game than Ugarte currently does.
