Casemiro crisis puts pressure on Ugarte
After Casemiro’s disastrous 45-minute outing in the thumping by Liverpool, Erik ten Hag looks certain to hand the Uruguayan midfielder Manuel Ugarte his debut at St Mary’s. Last time out, Ten Hag was forced to send on the inexperienced Toby Collyer at the break to try to bring calmness alongside Kobbie Mainoo because Casemiro was so embarrassingly off the pace in handing goals to Liverpool. Having not featured for Paris Saint-Germain before his deadline-day move to the Premier League, Ugarte got minutes in his legs with Uruguay, including a full 90 in Venezuela on Tuesday before returning to his new home to get to know his teammates. It seems a big ask for Ugarte to perform on Saturday lunchtime after a hectic few weeks but Ten Hag has little to no choice because he needs results and is heavily invested in the 23-year-old midfielder. Will Unwin
