It's been a mixed preseason for Manchester United thus far, with a 1-0 loss to Rosenborg followed up by a 2-0 win over Rangers, but one thing the club have seemingly got right this summer is their transfer business.
The Sir Jim Ratcliffe revolution looks to be thoroughly underway as the exciting additions of Joshua Zirkzee and Leny Yoro have already indicated the progressive direction the Red Devils are heading in, and it looks like more exciting names are set to come through the doors of Old Trafford in the coming weeks.
One of the names heavily touted for a move to United would be the ideal player to replace Sofyan Amrabat and has even won comparisons to a player the Red Devils were heavily linked with last summer: Frenkie de Jong.
Manchester United transfer news
According to a recent update from Sky Sports Germany reporter Florian Plettenberg, United are keen to bring Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Manuel Ugarte to Manchester this summer and have already made "several verbal offers."
However, while Plettenberg claims the player himself wants to make the move, he also reveals that the Red Devils' offers have been "too low."
According to the German journalist, the Parisians are "demanding" at least €70m – £59m – for the Uruguayan's signature, and negotiations are ongoing.
It would be an expensive transfer to get over the line, but Ugarte would undoubtedly be an upgrade on Amrabat and, therefore, worth it – the comparison to De Jong is just a bonus.
How Ugarte compares to De Jong and Amrabat
So, before we examine how Ugarte stacks up against Amrabat, let's look at this comparison with De Jong and where it comes from.
It stems from FBref, which compared players in similar positions in last season's Champions League, created a list of the ten most comparable players for each one, and concluded that the Barcelona ace was the fourth most similar midfielder to the PSG ace in the competition.
They didn't reach this conclusion purely off the eye test, though. Instead, it was based on how closely the pair ranked in several key underlying numbers, such as progressive carries, passing accuracy, live passes, tackles won, blocks and clearances, all per 90.
Progressive Carries
0.93
0.91
Passing Accuracy
90.9%
90.7%
Live Passes
57.9
58.9
Tackles Won
0.70
0.68
Blocks
0.47
0.45
Clearances
1.16
1.14
So, with his similarities to the talented Dutchman cleared up, how well does the Uruguayan "monster," as Statman Dave dubbed him, compare to the player he could either replace or compete with next season – depending on what happens in the market – Amrabat?
Well, when we look at their underlying numbers from 2023/24, it becomes quickly apparent that the former Sporting CP ace is the far superior midfielder.
Non-Penalty Expected Goals + Assists
0.07
0.04
Progressive Passes
4.05
6.35
Progressive Carries
0.74
0.58
Shots
0.47
0.29
Passing Accuracy
91.2%
87.0%
Key Passes
0.65
0.58
Tackles Won
2.65
1.54
Interceptions
1.86
0.77
Clearances
1.16
1.83
Errors Leading to a Shot
0.09
0.19
Successful Take-Ons
0.98
0.58
Ball Recoveries
8.42
5.77
Aerial Duels Won
0.65
0.48
For example, while he comes out second best for clearances and progressive passes, he comes out way ahead in almost every other metric, including non-penalty expected goals plus assists, progressive carries, shots, passing accuracy and key passes, tackles won, and interceptions, ball recoveries, aerial duels won, and he even makes fewer errors that lead to a shot, all per 90.
Ultimately, while Amrabat isn't necessarily a poor player, he is significantly worse than Ugarte. If Erik ten Hag wants to have a more complete and competent midfield next season, then he should prioritise signing the PSG ace, even if that means matching the French side's valuation.
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