Manchester United were foiled in Istanbul as Fenerbahce fought back from a goal down to hold the Reds to yet another Europa League draw this evening.
The overwhelming feeling is one of frustration, but there was a ray of light in the centre of the park as Manuel Ugarte turned in a solid performance and started to show his worth.
The Uruguayan is looking to play his way into form and was typically combative, sitting alongside goalscorer Christian Eriksen as part of a midfield pivot in front of the back four.
The 23-year-old got stuck in and was an immense presence shielding the backline, recording an impressive 10 defensive actions.
The pick of the bunch was a phenomenal clearance off the line to keep the hosts at bay before the interval.
His all-action performance saw him top the team’s stats for interceptions with three, and none of his teammates made more clearances (4) or blocked more shots (1) than him in a desperate defensive display.
He also made two tackles as he helped break up the pressure piled on by Jose Mourinho’s high-pressing team.
His uncompromising approach wasn’t always perfect and he was responsible for four fouls, twice as many as anyone else in a United shirt.
The midfielder arrived from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer with question marks over his ability on the ball, but was tidy with his passing in Istanbul.
He found his man 37 times, successfully completing 88% of his attempted passes.
Speaking on TNT Sports after the game, Paul Scholes felt that Ugarte played his “best performance for Manchester United”.
The Uruguayan will be desperate to build on tonight’s towering performance, and will hope to have played his way into Erik ten Hag’s starting lineup against West Ham on Sunday.
All stats from sofascore.
Featured image Carl Recine via Getty Images
