Erik ten Hag has declared that Manuel Ugarte is available for Manchester United's meeting with Southampton on Saturday.
Ugarte, 23, arrived at Old Trafford from Paris Saint Germain on transfer deadline day in a £42million deal after months of speculation linking him with a move to the Premier League.
However, Ten Hag initially implied that the Uruguay international may have to bide his time before coming into the team amid concerns over his fitness following a dearth of game time prior to his switch.
"If you see Manuel Ugarte, he didn’t play so far in the season. Not one match minute," Ten Hag said before the international break. "So he needs to build his fitness and then we have to build him in the team and I’m sure he’ll be an important player. But that will take a couple of weeks, maybe even months."
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The midfield maestro was signed as a long-term replacement for Casemiro, who endured a torrid afternoon in United's 3-0 loss against Liverpool just before the international break.
And after featuring twice for his country during said break, Ugarte could now come into the side for the veteran Brazilian when United travel to the south coast.
Speaking in his press conference on Thursday, Ten Hag confirmed: "Manuel Ugarte, we all have seen he played for Uruguay, he returned this afternoon, he was the only player who returned today, all the others returned yesterday so he is available for this game."
Join the debate! Would you start Ugarte against Southampton, Man Utd fans? Let us know here.
Ten Hag and United head into Saturday's fixture under pressure after losing back-to-back games prior to the international break. That has led to further speculation over Ten Hag's long-term future, but he continues to insist that he isn't bothered by any external noise.
The Dutchman explained: "It doesn’t impact me, I know in the process where we are. We are still in a transition process, we have to integrate a lot of young players. We still have to deal with injuries and have to bring players back into the team."
He added: "Before anyone thinks about excuses, no, we have to win every game. I know that. The team knows this and it doesn't matter who is available we will focus on every game and in every game have the mindset that we have to win."
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