Al-Ittihad have joined the race to sign Bruno Fernandes, with a report revealing what kind of offer could convince Manchester United to sell, and clarity emerging over when the transfer could take place.
Fernandes had the opportunity to leave Man Utd earlier this summer when Al-Hilal came calling. They were willing to pay the attacking midfielder an eye-watering £700,000 per week, while also offering United £100m for their captain.
Fernandes weighed up his options before rejecting Al-Hilal’s hugely lucrative proposal and opting to stay at Old Trafford.
His decision meant United never received that £100m bid.
However, Saudi chiefs remain desperate to make Fernandes their next statement signing. They believe Portugal icon Cristiano Ronaldo can convince Fernandes to make the move.
As per an update from the Daily Mail, Fernandes has performed a U-turn on his United future as he is now ‘open to a Saudi move’.
Al-Ittihad have held positive talks with the playmaker’s camp and have received encouragement that a deal can be done at some stage.
Al-Ittihad are supposedly willing to offer Fernandes even more money than rivals Al-Hilal. They want to convince Fernandes to move to the Middle East even though his current priority is playing at the 2026 World Cup.
The report adds that United could be convinced to sell the 30-year-old if a bid worth more than £100m arrives.
Such a deal would ease any financial concerns at United and give head coach Ruben Amorim a war chest for future transfer windows.
Despite Al-Ittihad ideally wanting to sign Fernandes this week, Fabrizio Romano states that the player is expected to stay at United until at least summer 2026.
“Many rumours that started with Al-Hilal, now we continue with Al-Ittihad, we basically spent the whole three months of the summer window with Bruno and Saudi, Saudi and Bruno,” Romano said on Tuesday.
“But guys, at the moment there is nothing really advanced into it, nothing really concrete.”
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Romano continued: “Bruno is happy at Manchester United. Then if you ask me in the future does Bruno have any chance to join Saudi Pro League? I think yes.
“[Saudi sides] have always been there and they will return to the table, for sure, because they love Bruno Fernandes. His quality, his leadership… so, they will return.
“But at the moment it’s not something close or imminent for Bruno to join Al-Ittihad.
“So at the moment Man Utd keep thinking Bruno will complete this season at the club and then we will see from 2026.”
It seems United fans will get to enjoy watching Fernandes for one more season before he re-enters talks with Saudi officials.
After the World Cup in the US, Fernandes could strongly consider a move to Al-Ittihad or Al-Hilal so he can pick up huge money in the final years of his career.
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