Uruguayan media savage Ugarte as Man Utd midfielder struggles in 2-2 World Cup draw with Cape Verde

Manuel Ugarte was subjected to a scathing assessment from the Uruguayan press after Manchester United’s midfielder struggled in a 2-2 draw with Cape Verde that has left Uruguay’s World Cup 2026 knockout hopes in serious jeopardy.

Bielsa’s side, who had already been held 1-1 by Saudi Arabia in their Group H opener, now sit on just two points and face the prospect of an early exit. Progressing from the group had looked straightforward on paper, but a stubborn Cape Verde outfit proved far more formidable opposition than anticipated on Sunday.

Kevin Pina opened the scoring with a spectacular free-kick before two late first-half strikes put Uruguay ahead going into the break. Helio Varela then levelled for Cape Verde in the 61st minute, and Bielsa’s men could not find a winner.

Ugarte, who played until the 70th minute before being replaced, failed to win a single one of his five ground duels against Cape Verde. Uruguayan outlets wasted no time in delivering their verdict.

Montevideo Portal was particularly damning in its player ratings: “Manuel Ugarte. Very sloppy with the ball. Against an opponent with very physical and fast players, he struggled a lot. When they dropped back, he wasn’t the right person to control the ball, which made him uncomfortable. Once again, he was one of the team’s biggest weaknesses and should have been substituted much earlier. He’s not there, he just wasn’t there.”

The publication did acknowledge one positive contribution — the cross that led to Uruguay’s second goal came from Ugarte’s feet — but the overall verdict was unsparing.

Fellow outlet El Observador took a similarly bleak view, extending its criticism to the entire Uruguay midfield. One report noted that television cameras caught Luis Suarez in a hospitality box holding his head as the crowd grew impatient, while a second piece delivered a stark summary of what went wrong: “Zero ideas, zero football, zero creativity. Nothing was coming out of the midfield. Uruguay was an anarchic team.”

The result means Uruguay almost certainly need a positive result against Spain in their final group game to advance. For Ugarte personally, the scrutiny comes at a difficult moment — his future at Old Trafford remains uncertain following an underwhelming debut season, and reports suggest he is likely to leave the club this summer.