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Manchester United target Manuel Ugarte has been omitted from the Paris-Germain squad for their season opener. The French champions begin their Ligue 1 title defence with a Friday night away trip to Le Havre, but will be doing so without the Uruguay international, who was left out of their 20-man travelling group. Ugarte has been linked with a move to Old Trafford throughout the summer, with the club believed to have been in talks with the player for some time, and reportedly agreed personal terms last month. However, the Red Devils remain reluctant to meet the Parisians' £51million valuation of the midfielder, who arrived in the French capital a year ago after joining from Sporting Lisbon for a similar fee. But recent reports from within the French giants could well be an indication that United are stepping up their pursuit of the 23-year-old. Earlier this week, Ugarte was said to have been working away from PSG's main group during training matches, alongside Danilo and Nordi Mukiele, who have been linked with departures and were also left out of the squad to face Le Havre. Should a deal materialise for the Uruguay international, he would become United's fifth summer signing in a busy summer transfer window. The club have bolstered their defence by bringing in promising 18-year-old centre-back Leny Yoro from Lille in a £52m deal, whilst Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui joined from Bayern Munich. Meanwhile in attack, talented Dutch forward Joshua Zirkzee signed for the 20-time English champions for a £36m fee. However, midfield is one area in which Erik ten Hag's side are yet to strengthen, with the Dutch coach apparently keen to bring in a new defensive midfielder. Question marks remain over the long-term future of 32-year-old Casemiro, who has previously been linked with a move to Saudi Arabia. Meanwhile, the club have appeared keen to offload Scott Mc Tominay, who has a year left on his current contract, with Serie A side Napoli most recently making an approach for the Scotland international. All of this would suggest that Ugarte could well be the solution to United's midfield conundrum, with transfer guru Fabrizio Romano reporting that the Uruguayan is eager to make the deal happen. The player featured in 37 games in all competitions in his debut season at Parc des Princes, where he won both the Ligue 1 title and Coupe de France. Despite starting just on 21 of these occasions, Ugarte topped the Ligue 1 charts for the most tackles in the 2023/24 season, meaning he would likely bring some much needed to steel to the centre of the park for the Red Devils. Prior to joining PSG, he played 56 times over two years at Sporting, winning the Portuguese League Cup in 2022. Agarte also has 22 caps at international level for Uruguay, since making his senior debut in 2021, and was an ever-present as his country finished third at this summer's Copa America. This service is provided on talk SPORT Ltd's Terms of Use in accordance with our Privacy Policy.