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Erik ten Hag is confident Manchester United are ‘working very hard’ to get further transfer business across the line with a deal to sign Manuel Ugarte believed to be close.
United have made four additions to the squad this summer with Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro, Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui arriving in Manchester.
A new midfielder has also been targeted with United locked in talks with Paris Saint-Germain over a move to bring Ugarte to Old Trafford. Talks to sign the Uruguay international in a €60million (£51m) deal are at an advanced stage what will be an immediate permanent move, or an initial loan which includes an obligation to buy next year.
Speaking ahead of Saturday’s Premier League trip to Brighton, ten Hag called for patience as United work to get the deal over the line.
‘Be patient, sit, wait, [we] keep working very hard, we will always try to make the best squad possible, we have a couple of days and we will always improve, as long as we have the opportunity we will look for it,’ he told a press conference on Thursday.
Quizzed specifically on Ugarte,’ ten Hag added: When we have news we will bring it.’
Mazraoui, de Ligt and Zirkzee all made their competitive debuts against Fulham on Friday night with the Dutch forward marking the occasion with the match winner.
Jadon Sancho meanwhile was left out of the squad. While ten Hag later explained the winger had been battling an ear infection in the lead-up to the game, the manager tellingly noted he also ‘preferred other players.’
Sancho featured for United throughout pre-season with the player and his manager seemingly burying the hatchet after their public falling out last season which resulted in the 24-year-old being banished from the squad.
Chelsea have been credited with late interest in Sancho with just eight days of the summer transfer window remaining. While Ten Hag is eager to have as many options as possible in his squad, he underlined the need for each player to have the right attitude and ‘deal’ with his selection decisions in the appropriate manner.
Asked if Sancho could return to the squad this weekend, ten Hag said: ‘We will see. We have a squad, I hope we will have a squad with double positioning and when we go into the season after September 1, that means you can’t select all the players but you need them all throughout the season.
‘We have to manage it, the attitude of the players is very important, sometimes they will be disappointed they have to deal with it, you win as a squad.
‘The prizes are decided next May and until then we need all the players in the squad and highly motivated, that is not an expectation, that is a demand on the squad.’
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