Man Utd make ‘new contacts’ with £85m midfielder after Sir Jim Ratcliffe suffers huge exit blow | OneFootball

Manchester United have made contact with Mateus Fernandes again and have offered him an improved deal, according to a journalist, as the club’s co-owner, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, suffers a major blow in his quest to get rid of Manuel Ugarte.

Tottenham Hotspur have been making inroads for a deal for Fernandes, with TEAMtalk reporting this week that the north London club are ‘confident’ of sealing a deal for the West Ham United midfielder.

The reliable transfer news outlet claimed on June 25 that Tottenham and West Ham were in ‘advanced discussions’ for Fernandes over a £85million deal.

The report, though, noted that Man Utd remain keen on the 21-year-old and were still in talks for the midfielder.

Transfer journalist Matteo Moretto reported that Fernandes has approved a deal to Tottenham.

Moretto posted on X at 1:19am on June 25: “Tottenham and West Ham are already negotiating for Mateus Fernandes.

“For Roberto De Zerbi, he is one of the priority signings to bolster the midfield.

“The player has already given his approval to the transfer.”

However, the reliable journalist has now claimed that Man Utd are back in for Fernandes and are ready to offer him an improved deal.

Man Utd accelerate Mateus Fernandes deal

Moretto wrote on X at 9:56am on June 27: “Manchester United is back in the chase for Mateus Fernandes.

“In the last few hours, there have been new contacts with the player; the Red Devils are willing to improve their contractual offer to convince him to sign.

“Manchester United also plans to hold direct talks with West Ham.

“Tottenham remains in the race and has pressed hard in recent days, but now United is trying to get ahead.”

Manuel Ugarte injury bad news for Man Utd

Man Utd making “new contacts” with Fernandes follows a terrible injury for Manuel Ugarte at the 2026 World Cup.

Ugarte played for Uruguay against Spain and had to be stretched off, as his side lost the match 1-0 to get knocked out of the competition.

The Man Utd midfielder collided with his Uruguay international teammate, Mathias Olivera while the pair chased Spain’s Pedri.

The 25-year-old appeared to catch his studs in the turf and injure his knee and was eventually taken off the pitch on a stretcher.

Ugarte was in tears, and it is very likely that he will be on the sidelines for months.

This will come as a bitter blow for Ugarte, as, like any other footballer, he would want to play and not spend time on the sidelines with an injury.

Man Utd co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe will also be hugely disappointed by Ugarte’s injury, given that the INEOS chief has been planning to sell him.

The Athletic reported back on April 23 that Man Utd will make Ugarte ‘available for transfer’.

INEOS chief Ratcliffe was not impressed with Ugarte’s performance for Man Utd against Leeds United at Old Trafford in April and personally wants to get rid of the Uruguayan.

However, the potentially long-term injury to Ugarte means that Ratcliffe’s plan to offload the midfielder will not come to fruition.