Bruno Fernandes has claimed Manchester United managers have “hurt” him by trying to sell him and criticized his team-mates who “don’t care about the club” as much as he does.
Fernandes has been the subject of increasing transfer interest over the past two summers. In recent negotiations, Saudi Arabian club Al Hilal offered United £100 million and the player a weekly wage of £700,000.
Fernandes did not name specific members of United’s hierarchy. Jason Wilcox is director of football, Omar Berrada is chief executive and Sir Jim Ratcliffe leads football policy.
In an interview with Canal 11, a channel affiliated with the Portuguese Football Federation, Fernandes was asked if he had received offers from Paris Saint-Germain or Real Madrid. In his response, he appears to refer to multiple transfer windows.
“Today, the question of loyalty is not seen the way it used to be,” he says. “I could have left in the last transfer window and made more money. Financially it would have been much better for me.”
“At one point I was going to leave – I won’t say where – but we would have won a lot of trophies that season. I decided to stay, not just for family reasons, but because I genuinely love the club. The conversation with the coach also made me decide to stay.”
“But from the club side, I felt a little bit like, ‘If you leave, it’s not that bad for us.’ It hurts a little bit. I’m not the kind of player they criticize me for, so I’m more sad than hurt. I can play in any game at any time, and for better or worse, I’m always playing. I’ll give my best.
“And when you look around you, you see players who don’t care for the club as much as I do, don’t protect the club as much as I do. That makes me sad.”
United’s position is that it was clear last summer that Fernandes was a fundamental component of the team’s plans. His transfer fee would have been significantly cheaper a year ago, before he signed a new contract in mid-August 2024 that runs until 2027 with an option for a further year.
“The club went through a difficult period. I could have said, as many people do, ‘I want to leave the club, I don’t want to train, I just want to leave for 20 million or 30 million, and then the other side will pay me more,'” Fernandes said. “And maybe I could have gone to a better club or made more money, but I didn’t do that.
“I wasn’t in a position to do that because I felt the empathy and love for the club was mutual. I think there can be empathy, but there comes a moment when money becomes more important than you. The club wanted me to leave – that’s in my head. I told them that later, but I don’t think they had the courage to make that decision because the manager wanted me to stay. If I had said I wanted to leave, they would have let me go even if the manager wanted me to stay.”
The 31-year-old did not rule out a move to Saudi Arabia. “It’s not about the money,” he said. “Financially, I can’t complain. The pay is very good. Obviously the difference is big, but that’s not what led me. If I have to play in Saudi Arabia one day, I will play there. After six years in Manchester, where it was cold and rainy, my lifestyle has changed and there will be sunshine in my children’s lives. I will be playing in a growing league, alongside internationally recognized players.”
It is understood that United have no intention of selling Fernandes and that he remains central to their long-term plans.
