Man Utd made Ugarte breakthrough after 'mending bridges' with his trusted ally

Manchester United are set to confirm the signing of Manuel Ugarte from Paris Saint-Germain, having successfully 'mended bridges' with his agent Jorge Mendes.

Ugarte will become United's fifth signing of the summer after Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro, Matthjis de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui, with the Red Devils forking out an initial £42.2million for the 23-year-old midfielder.

PSG have a 10 per cent sell-on clause, while Ugarte will put pen to paper on a five-year deal. The Uruguay international will be the second player represented by Mendes to join United this summer, with Yoro also working with his Gestifute agency.

Mendes' most high-profile client was, of course, United legend Cristiano Ronaldo and he helped broker the deals that saw the forward join the club in 2003 and then return in 2021. However, Ronaldo's second stint at Old Trafford was a tumultuous one and ended when his deal was terminated following an explosive interview with Piers Morgan.

Ronaldo's acrimonious exit reportedly caused a falling out with Mendes after he was unable to secure him a move to another European club. The pair officially cut ties, with Ronaldo's subsequent move to Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr not negotiated by Mendes.

According to the Daily Mail, Mendes' relationship with United was 'more than a little strained' as a result of the Ronaldo fallout, but the deals for Ugarte and Yoro are a clear indicator that it is 'water under the bridge'.

The Ugarte deal was finalised after United's technical director Jason Wilcox and director of player negotiations Matt Hargreaves flew to France on Monday to hash out the details with PSG, with Mendes also present.

Despite Mendes' professional split with Ronaldo, the super-agent has insisted the pair still have a "great personal relationship". Mendes said: "How do I see this phase of his life? Cristiano will always be in my heart.

"He is a special player and a special person for me. If I, a few years ago, thought that I could have a player with half the value of Cristiano, I would sign for less! And all of us Portuguese should be proud to have had and still have a player like him.

"I've always said it and I'll say it all my life: he was and is the best player in the entire history of world football! I don't have the slightest doubt, even compared to others."