There is no shortage of interest in Sporting midfielder Manuel Ugarte and his manager, Ruben Amorim, doubts that his club will be able to keep hold of him.
The 22-year-old has been thoroughly impressive for Sporting since arriving from Famalicao in 2021, shining not only in the Primeira Liga, but gaining experience in the Champions League and .
However, it has been a disappointing league campaign for Sporting as a whole, sitting fourth in the table and set to miss out on the Champions League next season.
Amorim admits that this is a big blow for the club in keeping their best players, while it would be an uphill battle anyway given the size of the teams interested in Ugarte.
Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham and Paris Saint-Germain have all been touted as possible destinations for the Uruguayan defensive midfielder, and the Sporting boss knows it is likely one of them will get their man.
‘I cannot comment on this issue, because it is beyond me. Now, we know that it is difficult to keep players like Ugarte,’ Amorim told .
‘Not just one club is interested, but several. Our objective is to sell, knowing that we missed the and it makes everything more difficult. I know what I want for the team and I have already conveyed that to the management.’
However, there are still question marks over what will happen with the Blues in the transfer market this summer given they are yet to confirm a new manager.
Mauricio Pochettino is expected to take over at the end of the season and he will likely have strong views on which players he would like to bring in, and more importantly which of their huge amount of players he would like to keep.
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