Ten Hag admits he didn’t want Man Utd to sell Scott McTominay as he slams rule and says it’s ‘not the right thing to do’

By Phil Thomas

NEARLY two decades have passed since Roy Keane led Manchester United into battle for the final time.

Fittingly enough, in a typically brutal showdown with bitter rivals Liverpool, Keane collected the 102nd yellow card of his Old Trafford career.

Two months later he was gone.

A fall-out with Sir Alex Ferguson ended in United’s greatest general of the Premier League era exiting for good.

It left a gap in the engine room that the Red Devils have never really come close to filling in the 19 years that have followed.

Many tried and some managed it in flashes and, although the trophies still rolled in for a time, there was no snarling, bring-it-on warrior prowling the midfield.

Until now… until the imminent capture of a man who views a 50-50 challenge like a starving Labrador staring at a side of ham.

For three months, United have licked their own lips at the prospect of a midfield marshalled by Uruguayan tough guy Manuel Ugarte.

Finally, it appears, they are getting their man.

A transfer deal rising to £50million is all but agreed with Paris Saint-Germain.

The signing of a player many believe will be the most crucial of the Erik ten Hag tenure is a whisker away from completion.

And, at long last, United will once again have a never-take-a-backward-step scrapper protecting their back line.

Of course at just 23, in only his fourth season in Europe, the South American is far from the finished article.

Ugarte is pretty much a ball-winner pure and simple.

Rarely will you see him pinging 40-yard passes to split a defence.

But ending his days with half the reputation of Keane and a fraction of his silverware would still mean a hell of a career.

And with just three goals in eight years as a professional, he will never be a box-to-box replica of their legendary Irishman’s early days.

But a midfield containing Ugarte — a natural replacement for the ageing Casemiro — alongside Kobbie Mainoo will certainly see an end to United being soft-centred rollovers.

This is the man who, on arriving at PSG from Sporting Lisbon a year ago, gave a telling glimpse into what French fans could expect.

There was more hitman than humour in his almost sinister response: “When we have the ball, it’s a game.

“When we don’t, it’s a fight.”

It was one he rarely lost in a stunning opening six months, too, soon becoming a cult figure with fans and a regular in the team.

The player Juan Ramon Carrasco, coach of his first club Fenix, once described as “having seven lungs and owning half the pitch” was living up to the hype.

Winning hearts and minds everywhere . . .  apart from in the PSG manager’s office.

Boss Luis Enrique, more used to ballerinas than brute force from his Barcelona days, poured cold water on the potential by highlighting limitations and much room for improvement.

So much so, from the turn of the year, he was suddenly a bench player, although still managed to top the Ligue 1 tackling charts with 98 as PSG won the double.

Yet if Enrique had little faith, Marcelo Bielsa — now Uruguay’s national boss — lacked none.

He saw Ugarte as the pillar in his plans for this summer’s Copa America.

Already a hero back home for starring in January’s World Cup qualifying win in Argentina, he was a regular, and even hit the winner in a quarter-final shootout triumph over Brazil.

Confidence was restored but back in Paris the arrival of Joao Neves from Benfica pushed him further down the pecking order.

With the door to Old Trafford swinging wider, Ugarte — a 15-year-old schoolboy when he made his pro bow with Fenix — was determined to stroll through it.

A fifth summer signing for Ten Hag after Joshua Zirkzee, Matthijs de Ligt, Leny Yoro and Noussair Mazraoui, albeit with less bells-and-whistles hype than some of them.

Definitely more piano carrier than piano player.

Then again, you need all kinds to make an orchestra . . . and in Ugarte, United may just have found their conductor.

Here are nine managers Red Devils chiefs are reported to have considered for the job and what allegedly happened with each.

Gareth Southgate

Enjoys plenty of support among Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos chiefs but made clear he wouldn’t talk to any clubs until after Euro 2024. There is yet to be any suggestion that contact was made with the England boss.

Kieran McKenna

Talks were opened with McKenna’s representatives before the FA Cup final, but the former Man Utd coach opted to sign a new deal with Ipswich after Ten Hag’s Wembley win.

Roberto De Zerbi

Allegedly sounded out before the FA Cup final with salary expectations discussed. But Ineos chiefs concluded ex-Brighton boss was not the right fit for the project.

Thomas Frank

Brentford boss met Man Utd representatives the day before the FA Cup final. The Dane also dined with Ratcliffe, Roy Hodgson and Frank Lampard at the launch of a new Ineos car in February.

Marco Silva

Fulham boss reportedly met Man Utd representatives face-to-face two days before the FA Cup final, around the same time as Ten Hag was conducting his press conference.

Mauricio Pochettino

Fell out of Man Utd’s thinking in the first week of June, despite being a favourite of Sir Alex Ferguson.

Thomas Tuchel

Made a very strong impression and came across well during a Monaco meeting. Personal terms were discussed before the ex-Chelsea and Bayern Munich boss decided to step back from the process.

Ruben Amorim

Sporting boss was discussed by the Man Utd hierarchy but did not make the final reckoning.

Roberto Martinez

Portugal manager was considered in the early stages.