Manchester United fans can now heave a sigh of relief as Sporting Lisbon captain Bruno Fernandes has reportedly agreed to personal terms with the Red Devils.
FutballNews understands that United has agreed to pay the Portuguese around £130,000-a-week if he finally completes his move to Old Trafford. Also, United are willing to offer Sporting £50million plus £10m in add-ons to sign Fernandes in the January window. The Red Devils are now waiting for the Portuguese club to agree to their offer, with Jorge Mendes set to present a proposal to Sporting on Thursday.
Portuguese outlet Record reports that the midfielder will travel to England after Sporting’s derby against Benfica on Friday evening and will be in the stands to watch United face fierce rivals, Liverpool, on Sunday afternoon. The paper added that in order to sign Fernandes, no United players will be included in the deal.
According to the report, it is very unlikely that he will still be a Sporting player by the time they take on Braga in the cup next week. It suggests that Fernandes may not start against Benfica but it will be his last game and an opportunity to say goodbye to the fans at the Jose Alvalade Stadium.
Fernandes began his professional career at Novara in Italy before spells at Udinese and Sampdoria. The midfielder then joined Sporting in 2017 and is now likely to call time on his three-year spell at Sporting in favour of a move to United.
He had told Sporting that he wants to move to United this month. Fernandes has already scored 12 goals this campaign on the back of notching 27 last season. The midfielder, who regarded as one of the best talents in the Portuguese league, has gone on to make a total of 81 league appearances and scoring 39 goals for Sporting.
The goalscoring midfielder became United’s primary target this month following recent results and injuries to key players such as Scott McTominay and Paul Pogba. Fernandes was an option for them in the summer but not considered a priority coupled with Sporting’s high valuation.
A deal for the 25-year-old was almost completed last week when Sporting President Frederico Varandes and director Hugo Viana arrived at England on Friday to negotiate the transfer with United executive Ed Woodward, but Mendes has been tasked with getting the deal over the line.
United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and assistant Mike Phelan also watched Fernandes during Sporting’s defeat to Porto on Sunday and believe his general play and notable goalscoring record would prove a valuable asset to their squad.
Solskjaer was silent on report linking Fernandes to United on Friday. He said: ‘There is a lot of speculation all the time about us going to watch matches,’ he said. ‘Where I have been and when I have been somewhere is irrelevant. He is another player at a different club who I can’t speak about.’
However, Sporting coach Silas admitted on Friday that: ‘I’m starting to think of alternatives within our team if Bruno doesn’t stay with us. I hope that doesn’t happen. In Portugal, unfortunately, we can’t keep the best players for long. Bruno is the best player in the league.’
