Manuel Ugarte has begun his stint at Manchester United on the right foot even though he has not played a match yet for the team.
Currently on international duty with his home country, Uruguay, the former Paris Saint-Germain man has spoken about his journey to Manchester United and what he believes he can achieve with the club this season despite the apparent turmoil they are in.
United have started the season poorly, winning only one of their opening three fixtures which has placed them in 14th place on the log heading into the international break. Tensions have also been rising at the club with Erik ten Hag reacting badly to some questions from journalists over the state of his team.
One journalist even asked him what he believes Manuel Ugarte’s signing will bring to his team that looks to be disjointed and the Dutchman snapped in response, saying, “I’m not Harry Potter!”, implying that Ugarte’s signing may not be a difference maker after all.
The player, however, has given the impression that he will be a difference maker in the team with his latest comments promising a turnaround in the club’s fortunes.
United’s new £42 million midfield signing promised to channel the Uruguayan spirit of “Garra charrúa” in his efforts to make them more robust. “So ‘garra charrúa’ is exactly that – it’s about fighting for every ball like it was your very last,” he said.
“It’s something totally natural that you find in Uruguayan players and it’s down to lots of things: the background and context we’ve played in and because there are so few of us.”
“Uruguay is a tiny country, but it’s won and achieved a lot. It produces good players and this is also down to that ‘garra charrúa’, which means basically giving everything you’ve got, no matter what the situation.”
He was also asked about his comments from the recent past where he claimed that football is a “game when we have the ball and a fight when we don’t” and if that still applies to his new chapter which is about to begin at Old Trafford.
“That was a totally genuine comment because I was describing my style of play and that phrase just came out naturally,” Ugarte, 23, said. “But it does kind of sum me up, because it’s something I feel very comfortable doing when it comes to winning the ball back, and now I’m looking forward to doing it right here.”
