Manuel Ugarte has told other clubs he only wants to sign with Man Utd, Ineos chiefs are really impressed with him

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Manchester United are set to complete deals for Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui, continuing to improve the squad.

More deals could yet follow, and the area of expected focus is midfield, where United are yet to sanction an incoming or outgoing so far this summer.

United had been pursuing Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Manuel Ugarte, before stepping back from a deal last week amid concerns over their asking price, but interest still remains.

We spoke to transfer expert Graeme Bailey to find out the lowdown on United’s midfielder pursuit, specifically Ugarte.

• READ: Who is Manuel Ugarte? Everything you need to know on Uruguay midfielder

Manuel Ugarte is still first choice

Manchester United are exploring alternatives and have also been offered players, yet it is Manuel Ugarte who still remains top of their list.

Ugarte also still wants to sign for Manchester United, undeterred by the club’s current stance, and Bailey explains that the Red Devils are still optimistic of getting a deal done.

He explains: “He’s still the first choice but they are assessing options. I don’t think they are panicking. They are seeing what business PSG are doing.

“With Ugarte, United don’t think their [PSG’s] demands are massively excessive, they are only asking to get their money back they paid Sporting this time last year [£50 million], and he’s had a decent season in PSG.

“They are only moving him on because they’ve got Joao Neves, they’ve got Zaire-Emery, they’ve got Fabian Ruiz, most clubs in the world would love that three.

“He’s a top class performer, he wants to come to United, I think United are holding onto hope they get him for a little bit less. I think that’s the ball park (£40-45 million).”

He adds that Ineos have been impressed with all of their pre-checks on Ugarte, including his desire to sign with the club, similar to Matthijs de Ligt.

“Ugarte wants to come. I’m told United really like Ugarte the way he’s come across, the reports on him, the off-field stuff, it’s a big thing for Dan Ashworth and Jason Wilcox, it’s a big part of their regime, they are doing their homework on these players.”

Ugarte has also given other teams the cold shoulder despite interest existing in him from other teams, his desire is to end up at Old Trafford.

He adds: “Ugarte has made it very clear to representatives of other clubs that he wants United. That’s probably why we are not seeing a host of links there, he does have interest elsewhere, he was one of the most wanted players in Europe this time last year when Chelsea were desperately trying to get him and PSG got him.

“He’s still number one, lines of communication are open.”

PSG continue spending

Paris Saint-Germain are set to continue their own spending, winning the race for Rennes attacker Desire Doue ahead of Bayern Munich.

Bailey considers this to be the end of PSG’s tentative interest in Manchester United forward Jadon Sancho.

He explains: “They are still in for Osimhen as well, they are still talking to him. I think the Doue one is interesting from a Sancho situation. Given what they have got in that squad still, Dembele, Kolo Muani, Barcola and now Doue, that just tells you they are not really going to be pursuing Sancho.

“The clubs are still talking now about Ugarte. When you are in conversations, other players will come up. Could you imagine Sancho and Ugarte being a swap, not really, but never say never in this market, you can’t rule anything out for definite, I just know that interest has cooled in Sancho but I think Doue was the first option anyway.

“United aren’t desperate for him to go, he’s part of the first team squad now. He’s very much in the mix, he’s higher up in the pecking order than Antony.”

The more PSG spend, the more likely it is they will have to sell to offset some of the fees spent on new arrivals, and this can only be good news for United’s potential move for Ugarte.

It has already been reported that United have agreed personal terms with Ugarte, and a move could speed along quite quickly if an agreement can be reached with PSG. We aren’t there yet, however, although the midfielder’s attitude towards a move to the Red Devils will surely help.