According to reports, there has been an ‘intriguing twist’ in the race to sign Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes, with Al-Hilal ‘ready to pay’.
Fernandes has arguably been Man Utd’s only shining light in a shambolic campaign as Ruben Amorim’s side finished 15th in the Premier League and lost in the Europa League final to miss out on next season’s Champions League.
Despite this, it has been suggested that the Man Utd captain could be sacrificed this summer as Old Trafford chiefs look to raise funds for a huge rebuild, with upgrades required in most positions to make Amorim’s squad suited to his 3-4-3 formation.
Fernandes has been sporadically linked with potential moves to Bayern Munich and Real Madrid lately, but Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal are most interested in the Portugal international.
A recent report claimed Fernandes has been informed by Al-Hilal’s hierarchy that he must make a decision on a transfer this week as they look to finalise their squad for next month’s Club World Cup.
READ: Sell Bruno Fernandes? Man Utd need him to lead rebuild, not pay for it…
It is yet to be revealed whether Fernandes has decided to accept a move to the Middle East, but The Daily Mail‘s Chris Wheeler has revealed that ‘his agent held face-to-face talks with Al-Hilal at a hotel in Riyadh on Thursday night over a mega-money deal for the United captain’.
It is noted that ‘the fact his representative travelled to Riyadh is an intriguing twist’, especially considering ‘talks at the Four Seasons hotel are believed to have continued late into the night’.
The report also revealed the overall package could be worth around £300m.
Wheeler adds:
‘Al-Hilal are prepared to effectively quadruple Fernandes’ salary of £280,000-a-week by increasing it to £700,000 tax-free as part of a package worth up to £200million over three years including bonuses.
‘If he agrees, the club are ready to issue the paperwork on a contract worth around £65m-a-season and make a formal approach to United with a bid in the region of £100m.’
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A report from Football Insider claims Man Utd are ‘to accept’ £80-100m offers for Fernandes, with former Premier League scout Mick Brown explaining why it would be “difficult to say no” to these proposals.
Brown said: “Man United have got to make a decision about Bruno Fernandes.
“From the manager’s point of view, he’ll want him to stay because he’s a big part of his squad and the player they can build the team around.
“But it’s still very much up in the air and it’s become the subject of plenty of speculation.
“They’ve been speaking about it behind the scenes and what they’re saying is, they want him to stay, but everybody has a price.
“If somebody comes in with a ridiculous offer for him, the £80-100million range which has been spoken about, then it will be difficult to say no.
“The financial situation they’re in after missing out on Europe means big-money offers will tempt them.
“If something like that comes in, then they’re going to have a decision to make.”
