Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes must not be sold this summer by Ineos.
Supporters of the Red Devils have been left sweating after news broke that Bruno Fernandes’ agent, Miguel Pinho, was spotted in the same hotel as Al-Hilal president Fahad bin Nafel.
It has been suggested that the Saudi club would be willing to spend £100 million to tempt United into a sale.
What’s more, there are eye-watering amounts on the table for United’s captain as he is reportedly set to earn £200 million over three years, should he sign for Al-Hilal.
Worryingly, there has been no communication either way by Bruno Fernandes’ camp, suggesting that they are still mulling over the proposal.
The Saudi side reportedly set a deadline for this week and with United returning from Hong Kong after today’s match, a decision should be imminent.
There is no question that £100 million injected into Ruben Amorim’s side’s coffers would give huge potential for a rebuild.
United are keen to sign attacking players and after missing out on Liam Delap, will have their eyes firmly set on options like Bryan Mbeumo and Viktor Gyokeres. Both will cost a pretty penny however.
Nonetheless, the sale of Fernandes, alongside the likes of Jadon Sancho, Marcus Rashford, Antony and Alejandro Garnacho would give United a mammoth war chest to fix a whole host of positions in the goalkeeping, defensive and midfield areas.
There is one major issue though. Bruno Fernandes is the beating heart of this team.
Frankly, you could count the amount of United players who have had a positive season on one hand and Fernandes is certainly part of that group.
He often carried his side with 19 goals and 20 assists in all competitions. The truth is that his assist figures would be substantially higher were he not playing with the wasteful Rasmus Hojlund and Garnacho.
What’s more, Ruben Amorim would gladly say goodbye to most of his current team of underachievers but Fernandes is not one of them.
The coach has frequently discussed the importance of keeping the midfielder and building his side around him.
The sad truth is, United could have been relegated without Fernandes’ impact, especially with the loss of Amad to injury in the final months of the season.
Critics will point to Fernandes’ age of 30 and think it is madness to reject such lucrative sums for a player not in his 20s.
The captain is no ordinary 30 year old though. He has exceptional fitness and has regularly played 50 plus games a season for the Red Devils and his whole career. With United playing much less frequently next year with no European football, we will likely see a refreshed Bruno at his very best more often.
Another key point is, transfers often don’t work out for even well-oiled machines, never mind United.
The Red Devils have an appalling track record of signings recently and it would surely be madness to get rid of the one player who has unequivocally worked out.
Sure, £100 million would allow for quite a rebuild, but would you trust Ineos to spend this efficiently to replace Fernandes? As a result, the pressure on any signing taking the place of the massively popular Fernandes could well be unbearable.
On top of this, there is also the very real issue that replacing Bruno’s influence may in fact need two or three players.
His goal and assist statistics are obscene for a central midfielder and it is hard to imagine who would replicate these numbers were he to leave. Fernandes is not only a creator though.
The statistics show that he wins the ball back and makes the most recoveries in the team. Therefore, United would likely need at least two players to replace his production for the side.
Lastly, despite United fans’ incredible patience and loyalty in this horrific season, it is safe to say this is not the most popular squad Old Trafford has ever seen.
The sale of an absolute fan favourite could dent morale even further amongst the global fanbase. Ineos have had their critics but if they rubber stamp the sale of United’s talisman in the name of finances, there could be hell to pay.
Featured image Shaun Botterill via Getty Images
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Alex Browne
Alex is a huge Manchester United fan, inspired by greats of his homeland such as George Best, Harry Gregg and Norman Whiteside. Proud owner of such niche shirts such as Kleberson, Eric Djemba-Djemba and Gary Neville. Grew up pretending to be Ruud van Nistelrooy and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in the back garden, with little success.
