Just as they have been for the last two weeks, Manchester United find themselves in three contrasting transfer sagas that threaten to make or break their 2024/25 season.
After acting fast to bring Joshua Zirkzee and Leny Yoro to the club early in the transfer window, business has drastically slowed down. Their season officially starts this weekend against Manchester City in the FA Community Shield before the Premier League season kicks-off next Friday.
Erik ten Hag’s squad, on paper, is better than it was in May. However, injuries to Yoro and Rasmus Hojlund have left United short so it’s no surprise that the list of players being linked with a move to Old Trafford is as long as it is.
Frustrations are continuing to boil in their pursuit of a new central defender and right-back – Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui in particular – but it’s their search for the perfect partner to Kobbie Mainoo that is proving to be a massive problem.
Manuel Ugarte was understood to be United’s number one target but tension between valuation of the midfielder has led to reports indicating the club have turned their attention elsewhere. The names that have entered the fray have been met with an underwhelming reaction, sparking frustration among supporters over their lack of authority in the Ugarte move.
However, for multiple reasons, Ugarte doesn’t tick the boxes that Ten Hag and United need. Opinions are everything in football but the Uruguay international doesn’t solve the desperate need for a tackling machine. Yet it’s a look at some analytic data that gives Ineos further reason not to match PSG’s £51m valuation.
A pin-chart made by Josh Williams (@DistanceCovered on X) has formed a collective database of No.6s across Europe’s top seven leagues – excluding the Premier League – who played over 1,350 minutes in the 2023/24 season and are aged 26 or under.
The graph showcased each player’s pass completion percentage and progressive passes per 90 (at least 10 metres long and moves the ball at least 25% of the remaining distance to the goal). Ugarte sits in the top three for pass completion at over 90%, which is encouraging, but his progressive passes per 90 is only four.
To put that number into perspective, four is the lowest number on the graph for that metric. PSV Eindhoven’s Joey Veermen registered the most with just under 12 but managed just 80% pass completion.
Other midfield targets for United such as Joao Neves, Martin Zubimendi and Ederson all boast improved progressive passes per 90. However, one eye-catching player in the graph is Bayer Leverkusen’s Exequiel Palacios. The Argentina international recorded a better pass completion rate than Ugarte and holds the best position on the graph in regards to both metrics.
After helping Leverkusen win their first-ever Bundesliga title, the 25-year-old has been linked with a move to Barcelona. Manchester City were also thought to be tracking him though it’s expected that Xabi Alonso’s men would only entertain bids of at least £51.6m (€60m).
Palacios is, surprisingly, one of the midfielders in Europe that hasn’t been linked with a move to Old Trafford. Of course, the job of a No.6 carries more weight than just progressive and successful passing and defensive actions are just as important.