Romano: ‘Keep a close eye’ on INEOS signing who’s being ‘phased out’ by Carrick ahead of potential summer sale

Manuel Ugarte is expected to complete a move away from Manchester United this summer after falling out of favour at Old Trafford.

With one MailSport journalist claiming the Uruguayan is being ‘phased out’ since Michael Carrick took the reins, it certainly looks as though INEOS are starting to make plans for his departure.

– Sunday, 1 March 2026

You couldn’t really blame them, either.

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In the chances he has been granted this season, he has failed to meet the standard required of him, hence dropping behind Kobbie Mainoo, who’s four years younger than him, in the pecking order.

– Sunday, 1 February 2026

Ugarte, while not kicking up a fuss in the media like other players have in the past, will really be feeling the effects of United’s lack of fixtures and, therefore, his lack of game time this season.

He has been an unused substitute in the Premier League a whopping 10 times already in 2025/2026. On the other hand, the 24-year-old has started only seven times and has yet to do so under Carrick.

The interim manager immediately deployed his XI with the midfield partnership that fans had been crying out for throughout the first half of the term while Ruben Amorim was at the reins: Mainoo and Casemiro .

The pair’s mix of youth and experience has worked tremendously – to the point United have yet to taste defeat in any game Mainoo has started.

Meanwhile, in the six fixtures that Carrick has been in the dugout for, Ugarte has featured for a total of just 27 minutes across three cameo appearances against Manchester City, Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur.

In the last three outings, he has not been called upon once.

(Photo by Molly Darlington/Getty Images)

Speaking on his YouTube channel last night, Fabrizio Romano revealed that the former Paris Saint-Germain star is attracting interest in the lead-up to the window opening.

He adds that Ugarte did receive a winter approach from Galatasaray , but nothing materialised from the talks.

“There is a player who could leave the club at the end of the season,” said Romano . “I would keep a close eye on Manuel Ugarte because Casemiro is leaving on a free.

“But around Ugarte, there is already some movement [regarding] clubs that are interested. There are clubs in Italy considering the possibility of going for Ugarte. There is interest in Italy.

“In the January transfer window, Galatasaray were interested, but then nothing really concrete advanced, so all parties decided not to proceed. In the summer, Ugarte could assess his options and eventually leave United.”

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