The Euros and Copa America are coming to an end with Argentina vs Colombia the final of the latter, and England facing Spain in the former’s final.
In Copa America, a third-place playoff game took place between Uruguay and Canada, the beaten semifinalists, to decide the third place.
Uruguay beat Canada 4-3 on penalties after a 2-2 draw in regular times courtesy of Luis Suarez’s goal in second-half injury time.
Manchester United’s Facundo Pellistri played 60 minutes while their midfield target Manuel Ugarte played the first half in defensive midfield after a foray as center-back in the semifinal.
Here’s how the Uruguayan media reacted to the pair’s performance-
Uruguayan media react to Ugarte and Pellistri
While neither player was on the pitch for the all-important penalty shootout, both had important moments in the game that could have swung the tie.
Pellistri scored in the 22nd minute, an effort that was eventually ruled out for offside. Aside from this, he was his usual hard-working self as he finished the game with three tackles, winning five duels in total.
Uruguayan outlet El Observador also had encouraging words to say about Ugarte’s performance, marking him out as the orchestrator of the game when he was on the pitch.
It wrote: “He played as a central midfielder and from there he controlled the team’s performance. He did not play in the second half.”
Ugarte had an all-action role in midfield, as he had four clearances and one each of tackles and interceptions despite playing just 45 minutes.
He also completed both of his attempted long balls as Uruguay strived to play over Canada’s aggressive pressing through the middle.
Unlike the quarter-finals when he hammered home the winning penalty to prove his personality and and composure, there was no star-making moment here as he went about his job in an unassuming fashion and watched the shootout from the touchline.
Ugarte and Pellistri at Man United
Currently, one of the pair is at Old Trafford and it looks like when the window ends, that will remain the case but the position of both will change.
That is because, while Ugarte looks likely to join United before the window ends, Pellistri’s future arguably lies elsewhere. Teams have already registered their interest in the winger and if United can get a fair fee plus a sell-on clause, it would be a good deal.
His path to the first-team has become even tougher after Erik ten Hag’s reconciliation with Jadon Sancho so moving away for regular football seems like the best bet.
Ugarte, on the other hand, will be hoping the clarity over his future at Paris Saint-Germain arrives quickly now that his international commitments are over.
United are reportedly leading the race but with new rivals joining in all the time, they would be wise to move quickly and secure him if they are seriously interested. His form at Copa America will do no harm to his list of suitors!
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
