The Europa League final can’t come soon enough for Ruben Amorim and Manchester United, with the Red Devils seemingly approaching their remaining Premier League games with a real lack of intent, having again been defeated at home on Sunday afternoon.
Up against a West Ham United side who had started the day below them in the table, the Old Trafford outfit inevitably slipped to a 17th league loss of the campaign, with Amorim subsequently stating that he has been left “embarrassed” by the domestic displays of his struggling side.
The Jekyll and Hyde hosts had swept to a 4-1 win over Athletic Club just days earlier, following a stunning, Mason Mount-inspired finale on Thursday night, although the rigours of England’s top-flight appear to be a step too far for Amorim’s men at present.
Thankfully, their upcoming showpiece opponents, Tottenham Hotspur, are enduring an even more miserable season following their 20th league defeat at the weekend, with next week’s meeting Bilbao set to be a truly desperate tussle for European glory.
As Amorim is fully aware, however, even success on the continent would not rectify what has been a grim 2024/25 for United, with far too many of his charges looking well below par – not least his former Sporting CP warrior, Manuel Ugarte.
Manuel Ugarte's debut season in numbers
By all accounts, the decision to sell Scott McTominay last summer came about amid the club’s pursuit of a new, more defensive-minded midfielder, with Ugarte ultimately replacing the Scotland star, following his £42m switch from Paris Saint-Germain.
While McTominay has since gone on to score 11 league goals as part of Napoli’s Serie A title charge, Ugarte, by contrast, has endured a topsy-turvy first year in Manchester, having netted just a solitary league goal to date.
There have been notable high points – having left Paul Scholes “surprised” by his standout display in January’s 2-2 draw at Anfield – although the Uruguayan has tailed off in recent weeks, having notably wilted in the build-up to Jarrod Bowen’s clincher on Sunday.
As journalist Samuel Luckhurst noted following that 4/10 display, the 23-year-old ‘can cope in Europe but not in domestic competition’, albeit with even his Europa League performances having been dismal of late, particularly during the semi-final tie.
Indeed, those two outings saw the ex-PSG man lose the ball on 27 occasions in total, before being replaced in the second half, with his lack of quality on the ball sparking comparisons to a certain Sofyan Amrabat. Like the Moroccan, however, he is an effective ball-winner, as shown by the fact that he ranks in the top 2% of midfielders in Europe’s top five leagues for tackles made per 90, across the last 365 days.
Games (starts)
28 (22)
Goals
1
Assists
2
Big chances created
3
Key passes*
0.4
Pass accuracy*
88%
Tackles*
2.7
Interceptions*
1.0
Ball recoveries*
4.4
Dribbled past*
1.4
Total duels won*
53%
At just 23 and a player whom Amorim knows well amid their time together in Lisbon, the hope will be that Ugarte can kick on and prove the doubters wrong next season. It is too soon to write him off just yet, although the same can’t be said for his struggling teammate, Altay Bayindir.
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It is not too difficult to find players who have flopped at the Theatre of Dreams in recent times, with the pressure and scrutiny that comes with being a Manchester United player certainly taking its toll.
There are those, however, who simply never look up to the task from the off, with Bayindir being a perfect case in point. As journalist Liam Canning has noted this season, the Turkish international has been simply “horrendous” for the club.
Signed from Fenerbahce for just £4.3m back in the summer of 2023, Bayindir’s lowly status was evident due to his minimal role under Erik ten Hag, even with first-choice teammate, Andre Onana, enduring an error-strewn Champions League run, in particular.
Ten Hag’s unwillingness to deploy the 6 foot 6 stopper saw him make just one appearance in all competitions that season, having shipped two in the 3-2 win over League Two side, Newport County, in the FA Cup.
Even with Onana heading off to AFCON duty in January 2024, there was to be no change in the sticks, with the Cameroonian actually departing late and returning early so that he didn’t miss a single Premier League game.
Fast forward to this season, and it has been a similar story for Bayindir, albeit while having been handed far more opportunities by new boss Amorim, including in the 4-3 defeat to Spurs in the EFL Cup.
That outing saw the 27-year-old concede directly from a Son Heung-min corner, following a meek attempt to keep the ball out, thus exposing just why he has been unable to usurp Onana over the last two years or so.
While that was followed by his penalty shootout heroics against Arsenal in the FA Cup, Bayindir still looked shaky in the early knockings of that clash, with his kicking having been particularly awry.
Those woes on the ball were also highlighted in the 4-1 loss to Newcastle United at St James’ Park, with the towering asset failing to make the most of Onana’s absence, having gifted the ball to the Magpies for the home side’s fourth of the day.
Since then, Bayindir has conceded six in just two outings against West Ham and Brentford, having looked distinctly hapless against the Bees, resulting in Luckhurst suggesting that he is actually United’s ‘third-best goalie’, behind the veteran Tom Heaton.
With reports suggesting that Bayindir could now be sold this summer for a fee of just £6m-£7m – amid the search for a new goalkeeper – it would bring an end to a simply forgettable spell in Manchester.
Yes, he’ll always have that night at the Emirates, although sadly for the £35k-per-week dud, there has been little positivity since then in a United shirt.
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