Manchester United’s post Erik ten Hag era began in jubilant fashion, as the Red Devils beat Leicester City 5-2 at Old Trafford in the EFL Cup, with Manuel Ugarte producing a ‘superb’ performance in midfield.
Interim boss Ruud Van Nistelrooy oversaw the game, and opted to start Ugarte, dropping Christian Eriksen despite the Dane being favoured ahead of the Uruguayan in recent matches under Ten Hag. Braces from Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes, and one from Alejandro Garnacho, ultimately nullified strikes from Bilal El Khannous and Conor Coady, and saw the home team progress into the Quarter-Final of the cup competition.
United were fluid and vibrant in attacking areas, with the likes of Fernandes, Garnacho and Marcus Rashford interchanging positions nicely, although there remained a vulnerability about the FA Cup holders, with Leicester still registering 16 shots in the match.
However, the extent to which Van Nistelrooy’s men were carved open was perhaps negated somewhat by Ugarte’s tremendous defensive work, and the statistics certainly reflect this. The new signing put in an impressive display in Manchester.
Ugarte Thrived Against Leicester
He made nine ball recoveries
Arriving from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer for a reported £50.27 million, Ugarte has struggled to settle at Old Trafford, with Ten Hag only granting him one Premier League start in the opening nine gameweeks. Limited to 108 total minutes in the league, the 23-year-old has had to try and impress in the Europa League and the EFL Cup.
However, a change of management could present Ugarte with a new lease of life and see him establish himself in the team, with Van Nistelrooy deciding to pair the £120,000-per-week man with Casemiro in tonight’s clash with Leicester.
With a 7.1 SofaScore rating, Ugarte was the best-performing player for United who didn’t score on the night, and was given the entire 90 minutes by the temporary Dutch coach to showcase his talents. The Uruguay international was excellent in possession, recycling the ball at a prolific rate and feeding the attacking players as frequently and quickly as possible, ultimately providing the platform for United to dominate the Foxes.
Completing 90% of his passes and playing eight passes into the final third, this was an exceptional display in an aspect of the game that isn’t usually associated with the player. However, Ugarte was also typically brilliant on the defensive side, making nine ball recoveries, four tackles, two interceptions and winning four out of six ground duels.
Deployed in a midfield three with Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro, United fans were understandably encouraged by the balance the trio seemingly gave the side. Sitting deep, circulating the ball and winning it back, it relieved some of the defensive burden on an ageing Casemiro, and allowed the Brazilian to foray forward and support Fernandes in the final third.
Ugarte Could Thrive Under Amorim
The potential new manager trained him at Sporting
With United reportedly close to finalising a deal to appoint Ruben Amorim as Ten Hag’s replacement, the Old Trafford faithful are starting to get excited about how the potential new boss could unearth Ugarte, and the midfielder’s accomplished display against Leicester served as a timely reminder of his qualities, with the 39-year-old manager likely watching on.
Amorim brought Ugarte to Sporting, and eventually developed him into a player PSG were comfortable investing significant money into. Thus, there is precedent to justify United fans’ enthusiasm about the pair working together again.
Writing on X, journalist Henry Winter waxed lyrcial about the ball-winning midfielder’s outing against Steve Cooper’s side, while alluding to what Amorim could do with the player:
Amorim is expected to begin his reign as United boss after the next international break, and he’ll surely look to build his midfield around his former player, who demonstrated tonight how effective he could be in the long-term, alongside players of Casemiro and Fernandes’ calibre.
All Statistics via SofaScore – correct as of 30/10/2024