Manchester United problem player obvious as Amorim obsession hinders far more than it helps | OneFootball

Manchester United fans are losing patience with £51million midfielder Manuel Ugarte, while Casemiro’s stock continues to rise.

Ugarte came off the bench in United’s 2-2 draw at Tottenham on Saturday afternoon with his side 1-0 up.

Thomas Frank’s side equalised 12 minutes after the Uruguayan’s introduction, and seven minutes later, the Red Devils were 2-1 down.

United did salvage a draw in the 96th minute thanks to Matthijs de Ligt, but it was another poor performance from Ugarte, who was beaten too easily by Wilson Odobert for Spurs’ equaliser and played Richarlison onside for his 91st-minute header.

Ugarte is a super sub…for Man Utd’s opposition

There’s no doubt that Casemiro is a vastly superior option to Ugarte in Ruben Amorim’s midfield, with a defensive-minded midfielder needed for the role next to Bruno Fernandes.

But as Ugarte is earning £120,000 a week, cost the club £51m from Paris Saint-Germain, and Amorim is obsessed with making substitutions – whether necessary or not – he will continue to come off the bench.

At this point, his involvement is hurting Manchester United, not helping them.

Ugarte is meant to bring solidity to the middle of the park and help see out games. Instead, he’s literally doing the opposite, acting more like a super sub for the opposition than the Red Devils.

Odobert glided past him as if he wasn’t there for Spurs’ equaliser, and Ugarte stepping up for Richarlison’s go-ahead goal was incredibly lazy, showing a lack of concentration and awareness.

Ugarte is clearly hurting, not helping Man Utd

Don’t just take our word for it; the proof is in the pudding.

In the Premier League, Manchester United haven’t won during Ugarte’s time on the pitch, and their +/- goals is -6, with a +/- points per 90 minutes of 1.89.

Furthermore, United have conceded nine goals in only 285 minutes with Ugarte on the pitch, while Casemiro has been on for only five of the 18 goals conceded in 543 minutes this season.

In terms of goals scored, United have netted 12 with Casemiro on the pitch and only three with Ugarte.

Looking at specific examples:

We haven’t even mentioned that Ugarte started in the Carabao Cup at Grimsby Town and was hooked at half-time with Amorim’s men 2-0 down.

Amorim’s substitutions have cost Man Utd

There’s still time for Ugarte to come good. After all, Casemiro was world class, then abysmal, and is now one of United’s most important players – definitely Amorim’s biggest success story in the squad.

Ugarte is more of a hindrance than a help defensively, and is obviously limited going forward, so it’s surely time for Amorim to properly trial a partnership of Kobbie Mainoo and Fernandes if he doesn’t want to keep Casemiro on for the full 90 minutes.

Substituting Casemiro off seems to be a habit for Amorim. Unnecessary substitutions are becoming one of his strongest ‘attributes’.

The Portuguese manager constantly changes his centre-backs mid-game, bringing off Harry Maguire against Spurs, for example, despite him playing well.