The agent of Manchester United attacker Facundo Pellistri is reportedly working to find his client a new club in the January transfer window.
Since making the move to Old Trafford from Penarol in the summer of 2020, Pellistri has only played for the senior team in friendlies and is yet to make his competitive debut for the club.
The 21-year-old was loaned out to Spanish side Alaves for the second half of the 2020-21 season and the entirety of the 2021-22 season before returning to try to make a name for himself at Man United.
Despite failing to make a single appearance for Erik ten Hag's team in the current season, Pellistri was called up to Uruguay's World Cup squad and started two of their group matches against South Korea and Ghana.
Pellistri was unable to prevent Uruguay from going out in the group stage, though, and he was left on the bench for Wednesday's 2-0 EFL Cup fourth-round win over Burnley at Old Trafford.
© Reuters
Amid his ongoing struggles for senior game time at Man United, The Express claims that Pellistri's representative is determined to secure an exit for the attacker in January.
The report adds that Pellistri is "itching" to finally make his senior Man United debut after playing a prominent role for his country in Qatar, and agent Edgardo Lasalvia is set to sit down with the club to discuss his client's future.
Lasalvia is understood to be working on a permanent exit for Pellistri rather than a loan deal, although clubs in Spain, Portugal and Italy would be interested in taking him on a temporary basis.
The Red Devils paid £7.65m to sign Pellistri from Penarol in 2020, and the report adds that they would hope to recoup the entirety of that fee to give the green light to a winter deal.
Lasalvia told ESPN earlier this year that he would expect the attacker to leave Man United should he perform well in Qatar, saying: "I think that with a good World Cup – which we believe he will have – his departure is imminent."
© Reuters
Pellistri failed to notch a single goal or assist in 35 games for Alaves during his loan spells, but he has three strikes and one assist from nine games at Under-21 level for Manchester United.
The Uruguayan's only minutes in a Man United shirt this season came for the youth team in an EFL Trophy win over Barrow on October 4, and he has been an unused substitute in seven Premier League games and four Europa League matches.
Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Alejandro Garnacho are all ahead of Pellistri in the Old Trafford ranks, and he could slip further down should Man United sign a new attacker in January.
Ten Hag has confirmed that he wants to bolster his forward line in the wake of Cristiano Ronaldo's acrimonious exit, with PSV Eindhoven's Cody Gakpo and Barcelona's Memphis Depay both understood to be winter targets.
Man United are also rumoured to have launched a £52.5m bid for Atletico Madrid attacker Antoine Griezmann and continue to be linked with his teammate Joao Felix, and Rojiblancos boss Diego Simeone recently insisted that no player was "indispensable" when asked about the latter's future.
Ben Knapton
