Ruben Amorim is becoming impatient with one of his players after the Manchester United boss criticised him for “letting his work rate slide.”
Ruben Amorim appears to have finally found some confidence in his squad again with a recent run of good form stretching to five games unbeaten in the Premier League.
The most recent game occurring away against Tottenham Hotspur resulting in a close 2-2 draw thanks to a late Matthijs De Ligt equalising header.
However, some profiles within the Manchester United squad have been raising concerns within the fanbase and now within the club due to inconsistencies within performances and not living up to the expectations upon arrival.
Eyes are constantly watching one midfielder under Amorim who’s sub-par performances have caused the Portuguese manager to finally speak out.
Amorim disappointed in Ugarte’s poor standard performances
Manuel Ugarte signed for Manchester United in the summer of 2024 from PSG with a heavy price tag of €60m carrying the hopes that he could add some tenacity to the Manchester United midfield with his aggression and drive off the ball.
The Uruguayan arrived under Erik Ten Hag off the back of an underwhelming 12 months at PSG, despite the promise that he showed at his previous club, Sporting CP where Ugarte played under his now current boss.
Erik Ten Hag only lasted a small handful of games until he was dismissed as United manager, so when Amorim came in, there was high anticipation for Manuel Ugarte’s involvement in the Amorim system.
However, it simply hasn’t clicked for the 24-year-old, who has struggled to cope with the intensity of Premier League football. Ugarte has started just two league matches this season and has remained on the bench for the beginning of every game since United’s 3-1 loss to Brentford in September.
Fabrizio Romano has spoken out and reassured United fans that the club “maintain their trust in Ugarte. They hire for improvement soon.”
Ugarte criticised in front of United team-mates
It was revealed by The Athletic that Ugarte was shamed by Amorim last season in-front of his team-mates, whilst the manager also told Chelsea’s new winger, Alejandro Garnacho, that he ‘would need a good agent during the summer window.’
Laurie Whitwell wrote: “Manuel Ugarte played for Amorim at sSporting between 2021 and 2023, but he was not given special treatment during the end-of-season meeting at Carrington that followed United’s Europa League final loss to Tottenham Hotspur.”
“Amorim particularly pointed feedback for Ugarte who he felt had let his work rate slide from their time together at Sporting.”
We have seen how brutal Amorim is when getting rid of players at the club, with the blunt end to the time of Marcus Rashford, Jason Sancho and Rasmus Hojlund, who all had very forceful exits from the club.
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Many pundits including United legend, Gary Neville, have made their opinions clear on Ugarte. Neville said that Amorim “doesn’t quite fancy him.”
Ugarte remains on the bench for the majority of Manchester United games but as proven by Casemiro under Amorim, players can fight and earn their way back into the team.
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