Leeds United are reportedly interested in signing Sporting Lisbon midfielder Manuel Ugarte this summer and the Uruguay international could be a true heir to Kalvin Phillips.

Could Leeds sign Ugarte?

According to Portuguese news outlet O Jogo (via Sport Witness), Leeds, Roma and AC Milan are all keen on signing the 21-year-old this summer as a result of his impressive performances with the Portuguese side.

Leeds even sent scouts to watch the youngster when his side defeated Arsenal in the Europa League earlier this month and may well have been impressed with Ugarte despite his late red card, as he contributed a phenomenal eight tackles and earned a superb 7.5/10 rating from Sofascore for his performance.

Sporting look likely to feature in European football again next season given they sit fourth in the Portuguese top flight, and it may therefore be difficult for Victor Orta to prise the midfielder away, unless they agree to pay his reported €60m (£53m) release clause.

Javi Gracia's side will certainly have to remain in the Premier League this season if they are to convince Ugarte to move to Elland Road in the summer, as he is continuing to establish himself as one of the top young midfielders in Europe.

Could Ugarte be a dream Kalvin Phillips heir?

This season has seen the Uruguay international make 22 appearances in the Portuguese Liga, averaging a superb 7.06 rating from WhoScored for his performances, which is better than any player in Leeds' squad.

Ugarte's most impressive attribute is perhaps his ability to win the ball back, which has seen him average a whopping 3.9 tackles per domestic game and a mammoth 5.3 tackles per Europa League match.

For context, Tyler Adams is the top tackler for the Yorkshire outfit in the Premier League this term with 3.7 per outing, which emphasises just how dominant the Sporting man has been in the middle of the park.

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It is no surprise that football talent scout Jacek Kulig labelled him a "machine" after he was ranked as the top tackler in the Champions League earlier in the campaign, while he also ranked impressively for duels won and interceptions.

While Adams has won over fans since joining from RB Leipzig as one of the potential replacements for the homegrown Kalvin Phillips, he arguably lacks the passing range of the England international, averaging just a 82.4% success rate compared to Ugarte's 91% average in the league this season.

FBref ranks the 21-year-old in the top 1% of midfielders for pass completion and tackling, which suggests that he could be a superb defensive midfielder at Leeds, and perhaps the true heir to Manchester City man Phillips, who won a reputation among fans as the 'Yorkshire Pirlo' during his time at Elland Road.