Man Utd interest in RELEGATED Ugarte alternative confirmed

Tom Weber

Updated: 6 Aug 2024 09:43 BST
4 min read

Manuel Ugarte, Man Utd, 2023/24 — © IMAGO

The Athletic has confirmed FootballTransfers' reporting that Manchester United are interested in Sander Berge.

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On August 2, The Transfers Podcast revealed that Man Utd have identified the Burnley midfielder as a fall-back option in case they are unable to sign top target Manuel Ugarte.

This scenario has now materialised with reports on Monday evening revealing that the Red Devils have ended their pursuit of the PSG star due to the French club's unwillingness to budge from their €60 million asking price.

Man Utd do not believe that the Uruguay international is worth such a hefty fee and have left the talks, instead focusing on other targets.

The Athletic has now confirmed that Berge is among the list of options under consideration despite having suffered two relegations from the Premier League in recent years with Sheffield United and Burnley. The Norwegian is keen to leave and the Clarets will not stand in his way.

The 26-year-old was one of the fastest players in the Premier League last season despite standing at 6ft 5in (195cm), meaning that he has the ideal physical profile for Erik ten Hag's system, who needs his defensive midfielder to cover a lot of ground, something Casemiro now looks unable to do.

Man Utd also keen on Gomes, Andre

Berge isn't the only alternative for Ugarte. In the wake of the news of Man Utd ending their chase of the 23-year-old, sources reaffirmed to us that Wolves midfielder Joao Gomes remains an option.

The Red Devils have been linked with the Brazilian since March and we were told that the interest is still genuine. This has since also been confirmed by Ben Jacobs.

The journalist further corroborated our reporting from April that Fluminense's Andre is under consideration. He had been in talks with Fulham, but we understand that the Cottagers have left the negotiations.