Manuel Ugarte has been a failed signing, but what’s happening now is making him Ineos’ version of the Glazers’ mistake.
Largely, Ineos have done a great job of distancing themselves from the Glazer era of transfer mishaps and scattergun squad decisions.
The result is a more driven squad built financially responsibly, with the odd miss, of which Manuel Ugarte is the biggest one.
Ugarte’s career at Man Utd is likely done, but the latest stumbling block is something that the fans will get horrific deja vu for.
What is a realistic asking price for Manuel Ugarte in 2026?
Will Man Utd have to accept a huge loss on Ugarte?
Manuel Ugarte’s contract proving difficult to offload
Man Utd wasted a lot of money on players under the Glazers, signing underachievers for large sums who were never going to be value for money.
But the actual reason for the financial ruin was their inability to sell well, since the players they signed, or extended, were given unreasonably high wages.
That is something Ineos took a hammer to, releasing most of these players, like Casemiro and Jadon Sancho, this summer.
In addition, new signings were given lower basic pay, and additional salary based on performance-based bonuses, which is how it should be.
Therefore, it is a throwback to the dark days when it emerges that Ugarte’s contract is proving to be a difficult one to offload.
The Uruguayan earns close to £120k/week, which is not in the ballpark of interested clubs due to the player’s form falling off a cliff.
Not being able to sell a player well because he earns too much is an area where the Glazers were accused of failing miserably.
Ineos need to set a marker with Ugarte
Ugarte hasn’t been a success, but with the club playing four competitions next season, they can’t afford to subsidise a player’s wages just to make their squad thinner.
What is a realistic asking price for Manuel Ugarte in 2026?
Will Man Utd have to accept a huge loss on Ugarte?
United need to set a marker with Ugarte, where he’s sold only if there’s a clean cut between them and the player.
He might be a useful asset to close the games in Europe, or to provide rest to the first-choice stars.
If he’s not happy with that role, he can take a pay cut to move elsewhere. What United can’t do is sanction a loan move where there is an option to buy, and they pay part of the wages.
Ugarte has firmly become for Ineos what many players were for the Glazers, and that is where the similarities need to end.
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