Man Utd 'identify £50m Casemiro upgrade' who'll bring one key quality to the club

Manchester United are reportedly eyeing PSG midfielder Manuel Ugarte as a potential replacement for Casemiro, with Emmanuel Petit touting him as the ideal player to inject some much-needed grit into the squad.

The ex-Arsenal midfielder has highlighted Ugarte's combative nature as a key attribute that would benefit Erik ten Hag's side, suggesting that the Uruguayan could bring a level of fight that is currently scarce among the Red Devils' ranks.

Despite interest from Liverpool and Bayern Munich, it appears United have emerged as the leading contenders to snap up the £50million-rated holding midfielder, who has recently fallen out of favour at Parc des Princes under boss Luis Enrique.

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United have already kicked off their summer signings with Dutch striker Joshua Zirkzee arriving from Bologna for a fee of £36.5million. Now attention may shift to securing Ugarte's services following his successful stint at the Copa America, where he helped Uruguay to a third-place finish.

Petit, speaking as part of bet365's Euro 2024 coverage, said: "Manuel Ugarte would be a great signing for Manchester United. He was starting for PSG under Luis Enrique until they got beaten by Newcastle, after that he was on the bench.

"However, Ugarte is mentally and physically strong as well as a holding midfielder who is ready to fight and I think he's got the qualities to adapt himself to the Premier League. He could be a very important player for Manchester United because defensively they have been very weak for the last few years, he can play a very important role as holding midfielder just in front of