The middle midfield position alongside Bruno Fernandes is the only one in Ruben Amorim’s lineup that is up for grabs.
For the Portuguese magnifico, Casemiro is still the go-to partner.
However, the Brazilian’s athleticism has diminished. He can’t cover as much ground as he once could, which exposes United’s midfield.
He can’t give Fernandes the full defensive cover he needs to be a successful deep-lying playmaker.
Interesting midfield options fronted
Amorim wouldn’t be experimenting with innovative ways to maximize the performance of his engine room if he had signed Carlos Baleba, his ideal midfield acquisition.
Rather, new ideas have surfaced on who should be used in the center of his midfield to provide the stability that his United team so obviously needs.
In the middle of the park, defenders Lisandro Martinez, Leny Yoro, and even Noussair Mazraoui have all been hailed as strong choices.
But shouldn’t Amorim give the available midfielders a chance before resorting to the brutal tactic of starting a defender in the middle?
Ugarte keen to win back Amorim’s trust
Without a doubt, Manuel Ugarte is hoping for an opportunity to win back Amorim’s trust.
The 2024 summer acquisition has had a difficult start to the season as he has yet to play a league game and was substituted out at halftime in United’s Carabao Cup loss to Grimsby, which United lost on penalties.
The expectation was that Ugarte would overcome his underwhelming debut campaign at Old Trafford.
But he hasn’t, as he recently acknowledged, despite vowing to improve.
Some United supporters are eager for him to return, but they also appreciate what Ugarte has stated while playing for his country.
“I’m going to start,” said Ugarte on ESPN ahead of Uruguay’s World Cup qualifier against Chile, having started the 3–0 win over Peru on the bench.
The 24-year-old went on to say:
“I’m very well, very happy. I feel physically fit, and I want to take advantage of this opportunity to show why I’m on the national team.
“Being in a World Cup is a huge achievement, and for a player, it’s something incredibly important. I went to the last World Cup, and it was beautiful—both for me and my family.”
All eyes on Chile vs Uruguay
One would hope that everything go according to plan for the former PSG player, who has guaranteed a strong showing against Chile on Wednesday morning.
He should ideally duplicate the type of performance he put on during the 2–1 victory over West Ham in the Premier League Summer Series.
The Peoples Person later described Ugarte’s performance as “combative and busy in the middle of the park,” saying that he sold fans a dream during that game.
Hopefully, he can exemplify those traits in the opportunities he gets, such as against Chile and in cameo appearances under Amorim. Because if he does, it may only be a matter of time before he wins back his spot in Amorim’s starting XI and emerges as Fernandes’ ideal midfield partner ahead of the expected midfield shake-up next year.
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