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Manchester United are considering a range of options as alternatives to Manuel Ugarte with Nottingham Forest midfielder Danilo a player the club’s recruitment department “hugely appreciate.”
Ugarte, 23, had emerged as United’s first-choice target to upgrade their midfield this summer but Paris Saint-Germain’s refusal to compromise on their valuation of the Uruguayan international has seen negotiations stall.
PSG signed Ugarte for €60 million last summer from Sporting after the 23-year-old impressed in the Portuguese capital. He has never fully settled in France, however, and Luis Enrique does not consider his style a complimentary fit with the philosophy the Spanish coach is seeking to establish in Paris.
Furthermore, the Ligue 1 champions recently confirmed the signing of Joao Neves – the Benfica starlet United themselves had been linked to earlier this summer – who has effectively replaced Ugarte in Enrique’s system.
As a result, PSG are actively seeking to sell the former Sporting midfielder, but want to recoup the money spent on him last summer.
From United’s perspective, the €60 million fee is outside the club’s budget this window, having already agreed deals for Leny Yoro (LOSC Lille) and Joshua Zirzkee (Bologna) earlier in the summer.
There is also likely to be a belief that the price for a player who PSG are actively seeking to shift after a disappointing twelve months in France should decrease accordingly.
The gap between what United are willing to pay and what PSG are willing to accept is described as “quite far apart” by Athletic reporter, David Ornstein. As such, he writes, Old Trafford officials are “switching their attention…to other candidates” and will only revisit a move for Ugarte if PSG “reduce” their demands.
A report relayed by The Peoples Person revealed potential alternatives to the Uruguayan included Youssouf Fofana (AS Monaco), Martin Zubimendi (Real Sociedad) and Sander Berge (Burnley).
However, another potential option has been proposed in a report by HITC, which contends United have been offered “more than a dozen alternatives” since the news of Ugarte’s abandoned pursuit broke. Chief amongst them is Forest’s Danilo – a player United were linked with back in April as a potential replacement to Casemiro.
HITC describe the 23-year-old Brazilian as having “settled brilliantly into Premier League life” following his £16 million move from Palmeiras in January 2023.
Danilo has scored 5 goals and provided 4 assists in for 42 league appearances for a struggling Forest side. Considering he is primarily a defensively-minded midfielder – ranking in the 94th percentile for interceptions, 91st for clearances and 89th for blocks – these are impressive attacking returns.
The report details how the Brazilian is “liked by United scouts” with the fact he has demonstrated he has fully adapted to the rigours of English football a key advantage he has over players like Fofana and Zubimendi, as well as Ugarte.
And while the potential price of Danilo is likely to be high, considering he has four years remaining on his contract with Forest, the impressive displays he has produced at the heart of a Premier League midfield make him an ideal candidate to upgrade Erik ten Hag’s engine room.
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