Man Utd stance on Bruno Fernandes transfer revealed after Al-Hilal interest
The United skipper is a wanted man.
Manchester United have no interest in selling captain Bruno Fernandes this summer despite interest from Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal.
Fernandes has been perhaps the only shining light for United in what has proved a difficult campaign under Erik ten Hag and Ruben Amorim.
The Portuguese international has notched up 19 goals and 18 assists in all competitions this season and has been one of the driving forces behind United’s run to the Europa League semi-finals.
Despite signing a contract extension last summer, reports from the Middle East suggested that Al-Hilal held talks with Fernandes’ representatives on Monday.
The club sit second in the Saudi Pro League and have funds to spend after their number-one target, Mohamed Salah, opted to extend his stay at Liverpool.
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However, the Daily Mail reports that United have received no formal offer for Fernandes and the club have no plans to sell him even if a bid is made.
The report adds that there was contact between the two camps last year, but that came before Fernandes finalised a contract extension with United.
Fernandes was linked with a move to Real Madrid earlier in the season, but Amorim was keen to dismiss any talk of his skipper leaving Old Trafford.
‘No, it’s not going to happen. He’s not going anywhere because I’ve already told him!’ Amorim said in March.
‘I want Bruno here because we want to win the Premier League again, so we want the best players to continue with us. He’s 30, but he’s still so young, because he plays 55 games every season.
‘Between assists and goals, he’s there for 30 at least, so he’s the type of player we want here and he’s not going anywhere.’
Fernandes has previously revealed that he had offers to leave United before signing his most recent contract extension.
‘I sat with the club because I had an offer to leave,’ he recently revealed. ‘We talked about the possibility of me leaving the club or staying.
‘They said what they wanted from me. I just asked if they still see me as part of the future of the club or not. I spoke at the time with (Erik) Ten Hag also.
‘He was very clear with me, the club was very clear with me, that they thought I would be a big part of this rebuild. I thought that we could be successful.’
Al-Hilal, meanwhile, are still likely to pursue a marquee signing this summer, with Victor Osimhen a potential target.
The club are also on the lookout for a new coach after the departure of Jorge Jesus at the weekend.
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