A picture recently circulated of Manuel Ugarte brandishing his middle finger to photographers at Stockport Station. It was easy to jump to conclusions or to stereotype him.

What the picture did not capture was professional autograph hunters provoking United players. Staff at United say Ugarte's sign language was for them, rather than the photographer. The photographer has not had any personal dealings with Ugarte.

Security staff have clocked how much of a nuisance the autograph hunters are for United. Signed United shirts continue to do a roaring trade and there were some ghoulish fans loitering outside Manchester Cathedral after the funeral of Kath Phipps on Monday afternoon.

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The hunters have been prone to tail players on their journey home. Sometimes, they follow them literally all the way. At Sir Alex Ferguson's previous address in Wilmslow, the odd chancer had the brass neck to ring the United great's doorbell.

They were hanging around in Spinningfields when Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui emerged from dinner at The Ivy. The pair were officially announced as United players the following day.

United were asked to release a statement on behalf of Mason Mount after he was pestered in his first summer. Mount was filmed declining requests and portrayed as the villain. Mount was merely giving the usual familiar faces short shrift. Ugarte was literally more pointed with his reaction.

Erik ten Hag was a stickler for the grinta Lisandro Martinez and Casemiro brought to the United side in his first season. Casemiro was repeatedly described as the "cement between the stones" before he started crumbling.

Ugarte is now pouring into that void in midfield. Aside from Amad, he is the only other player who has maintained a consistent performance level under Ruben Amorim. Hardly a surprise when Amorim coached Ugarte for two years at Sporting.

Ten Hag did not want Ugarte but Dan Ashworth did. The former United sporting director outlined his confidence in a deal for the Uruguay international to Burnley, anticipating a possible United bid for Sander Berge. The link possibly drove up Berge's £25million fee to join Fulham.

Raphael Varane had Rio Ferdinand and Casemiro was introduced to Roy Keane. Ugarte pressed the flesh of Paul Scholes after the £50.75million signing was paraded on the Old Trafford pitch.

Ugarte was unveiled moments before kick-off against Liverpool on September 1. Halfway through that contest, Casemiro was hooked after a possible career-ending first half. Ugarte's importance grew without him having a kick.

At Anfield on Sunday, He was fortunate to avoid a caution for a late sliding tackle on Cody Gakpo early on. Cannily, Ugarte extracted it of any maliciousness. Reprieved by referee Michael Oliver, Ugarte had the freedom to exert himself and went through the game without receiving a yellow card for the first time in three matches.

It was not quite 'he came from Uruguay and made the Scousers cry', a la Diego Forlan yet United's midfields were poles apart in their fixtures with Liverpool four months apart. That was down to Ugarte.

A defensive midfielder had to be United's priority in the summer yet Ugarte was the last through the door, registered so late on deadline day he was ineligible to make his debut against Liverpool two days later.

In recent weeks, Ugarte has shown why he ought to have been the first through the door. The 2-2 draw with Liverpool was only his fifth start alongside Kobbie Mainoo and the first that they had avoided defeat.

As the goalscorer Martinez bagged a ball to pay homage to his pregnant partner, it was Ugarte who was mobbed by the United supporters in the front row of the Anfield Road End. Ugarte and Mainoo were soon in a clinch as they savoured the celebrations.

Ugarte and Martinez, two South Americans, are very close and have been described as nearly always together by club staff. The pair are often sipping Mate tea and Martinez drives Ugarte into Carrington.

There are at least eight Spanish speakers in the United squad and Mainoo started taking lessons last season. Ugarte's English has been described as a good conversational level. The 23-year-old stressed on the day he joined United he wanted to try to converse in English so he could quickly beat the language barrier.

Another South American unwittingly braced Ugarte for what to expect at United. Edinson Cavani was Ugarte's roommate on international duty with Uruguay while the striker was playing for United and the two of them spoke about the club on several occasions.

United are bucking their trend of taking players off the hands of big clubs only for their careers to flatline. They got it wrong with Matthijs de Ligt but got it right with Noussair Mazraoui from Bayern Munich. Ugarte, jettisoned by Paris Saint-Germain after only one season, is starting to dispel doubts about his compatibility with the Premier League.

Club sources say Ugarte is always one of the last players to leave Carrington and he is undertaking additional gym sessions after training. Ugarte's father played semi-professionally in Uruguay and Ugarte used to play against him and his elder brother in the park as a child to toughen up.

That dedication to beefing up is bound to further endear Ugarte to Amorim, who said United's "physical aspect" could improve at his maiden press conference.

Dressing room sources say Ugarte was visibly happy when United quickly closed in on a deal for Amorim on the same day they sacked Ten Hag. Ugarte became a sounding board for intrigued teammates ahead of Amorim's arrival in Manchester on November 11. He has also regaled players and staff with anecdotes about another coach, Marcelo Bielsa, now in charge of Uruguay.

The tales about Bielsa make Ugarte's salute tame.