Manchester United's fifth summer signing comes at a price for Erik ten Hag

Refreshing the midfield is Manchester United's ambition in the final week of the summer transfer window.

Erik ten Hag has made the addition of a new midfielder his priority before deadline day, but it will come at a cost if they are to get their top target for the role.

United insist a deal to sign a midfielder would not depend entirely on selling players first, yet a move for Manuel Ugarte, who PSG value at €60 million was always likely to require a significant outgoing to help finance it.

It's only a matter of time before it happens. Hannibal Mejbri is set to join Burnley on an initial loan move with the obligation for it to become permanent, while United have also reached an agreement to sell Scott McTominay to Napoli. It is understood a fee in the region of €30million (£25.4m) has been proposed for the Scotland international as well as a future sell-on clause.

Replacing an utility player like McTominay with a specialist like Ugarte might seem like a no-brainer, but in an ideal world Ten Hag would have both of them in his squad. The 27-year-old might not be a player worthy of a starting role in the United side, but he has proven himself on countless occasions as a reliable squad option, who is happy to sacrifice himself for the greater good of the team. Without his contributions last season, Ten Hag might not even be in a job anymore and he has always made room for a player who gives everything for the team.

A lot of the rhetoric around McTominay focuses on what he can't do, but instead it should be on what he can do. While he might not be the perfect tactical fit for Ten Hag's style of play, his physical traits and work rate make him a valued squad member for a number of different scenarios.

"If you score 10 goals in a season and perform very well for Scotland there will be an interest," Ten Hag said of the midfielder a month ago. "We want to actually keep him because he's a very important player for our squad. We've seen what he can contribute last season. When we had the sixes and he could play in a more advanced role, he's a highly interesting player for our team."

Unfortunately for the manager, he is also somewhat of a luxury. With a valuation of £30 million, it makes sense to cash-in on a squad player for such a fee, particularly because it would be classified as pure profit due to the fact he is an academy graduate. McTominay's sale will not only facilitate a move for an upgrade in Ugarte, it should also ease the financial situation enough for them to consider any further additions to their squad either before deadline day or even in the January transfer window if required.

United will sign a specialist, but they will lose a squad specialist too.