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Manchester United are set to face a difficult situation over moving on Manuel Ugarte in the coming years, according to a report.

Man Utd had wanted to sell Ugarte during the summer transfer window.

The Red Devils’ co-owner, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, was personally in favour of offloading Ugarte from Man Utd, according to a report in The Athletic in April.

The report in the respected publication said that INEOS chief Ratcliffe wanted the midfielder to be ‘sold’ after watching him live for Man Utd against Leeds United earlier that month.

However, Ugarte suffered a long-term knee injury while representing Uruguay at the 2026 World Cup finals this summer.

That means Man Utd will have to keep the 25-year-old midfielder until at least next summer.

According to ESPN, Ugarte remaining at Man Utd has now become a problem for the Red Devils.

The report stated: ‘Manuel Ugarte is one example.

‘The Uruguayan arrived at Old Trafford for a fee of more than £50 million in 2024 and after two underwhelming campaigns, he was available for transfer in this window.

‘The club knew that, to balance the books, they would need an offer of around £20 million – something that was unlikely given his recent form and wage demands.

‘The best they could realistically hope for was to arrange a loan with a club prepared to cover Ugarte’s salary.

‘In the end, a serious knee injury at the World Cup ended any hope of a move, and United will have Ugarte’s wages covered by the FIFA Club Protection Programme for players injured while on international duty.

‘However, the injury has only pushed the problem further down the line.

‘Ugarte is under contract until June 2029, which means United will be left searching for another solution next summer and possibly even beyond.

‘It is a problem that could potentially continue for another three years, and it is exactly the kind of situation Berrada and Wilcox want to avoid.’

Along with Ugarte, Man Utd also wanted to move on Joshua Zirkzee in the summer transfer window.

However, the Netherlands international forward remains at Man Utd, and manager Michael Carrick is prepared to work with him.

Carrick told BBC Sport: “For sure Josh is important, for the team, for the squad, the depth.

“Josh is happy here and I have a really good relationship with Josh.

“He wants to play more than he has but that is good healthy competition.

“We have a lot of games coming up, we have a shorter period between games,

“Josh can do some really top things, I have seen it myself.”