Dan Ashworth Manuel Ugarte Morocco Uruguay Football Sporting man performer patient FIVE Align Dan Ashworth Manuel Ugarte Morocco Uruguay

Manuel Ugarte was Erik ten Hag's third-choice midfield signing for Manchester United

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Manuel Ugarte was not former Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag's preferred choice to bolster their midfield. Ugarte, 23, joined United from Paris Saint-Germain on transfer deadline day for a fee rising to £50.75million but only one of his four starts under Ten Hag came in the Premier League.

He was named man of the match in the 1-1 Europa League draw with Fenerbahce last week but was dropped for Casemiro in the 2-1 defeat at West Ham on Sunday.

The Uruguay midfielder started on the bench in four of Ten Hag's final five fixtures in charge after he struggled in the 3-0 home humbling by Tottenham on September 29.

Ten Hag wanted to sign Sofyan Amrabat on a permanent basis or recruit Sander Berge from relegated Burnley. United had an option to buy Amrabat for an initial €25m, having paid Fiorentina €10m to loan the Moroccan for the entirety of last season. READ MORE: Player ratings vs Leicester READ MORE: United agree Amorim deal Despite the noise surrounding Berge, United sporting director Dan Ashworth was confident of concluding a deal for Ugarte two weeks before the August 30 deadline.

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