Bruno Fernandes has sensationally claimed that Manchester United DID want him to leave for Saudi Arabia in the summer.
In a bombshell new interview given to Portuguese outlet Canal 11, the United captain told all on Al-Hilal’s pursuit in the summer and how he was left saddened by the fact the powers that be in Manchester were keen for him to move on.
Fernandes, who revealed he spoke to Cristiano Ronaldo about a potential switch to Saudi Arabia, said: ‘Manchester United wanted me to leave, I have that in my head.
‘I think they didn’t have the courage because Ruben Amorim wanted me here, but from the club’s side I felt that if I left, it wouldn’t be so bad.
‘Cristiano advised me, but the final decision always rested with me. I decided to stay because I genuinely love the club, but loyalty isn’t as well regarded as it once was.’
Fernandes has been open before about the prospect of a summer move to Saudi Arabia and why family reasons was one aspect of turning it down.
But this appearance on the Soltinhos pelo Mundo show, filmed before their 4-4 draw with Bournemouth, has put a whole new perspective on things with the United captain ‘more than hurting’ at how it was all handled.
‘The issue of loyalty isn’t viewed the same way it used to be,’ he said.
‘I could have left in the last transfer window and I would have earned much more money. I was going to leave a season ago – I won’t say where – but I would have won many trophies that season.
‘I decided to stay, also because of family reasons, but because I genuinely love the club.
‘The conversation with the manager also made me stay. But, from the club’s side, I felt a bit like, “if you leave, it’s not so bad for us.” It hurts me a bit. More than hurting, it makes me sad because I’m a player who [there is] nothing to criticise. I’m always available, I always play, good or bad. I give my all.
‘Then, you see things around you, players who don’t value the club as much and don’t defend the club as much… that makes you sad.’
Speaking to former player Candido Costa, Fernandes evidently had a lot to get off his chest as the topic of Saudi Arabia and United continued.
‘If one day I have to play in Saudi Arabia, I’ll play in Saudi Arabia,’ he said.
‘My lifestyle will change, my children’s lives will be sunny, after six years in Manchester with cold and rain, I’ll be playing in a growing league, with renowned players.
‘I could have left like many people do and said: “I want to leave, I don’t want to train, I just want to leave for 20 or 30 million, so they pay me more on the other side.” But I never did that.
‘I never felt in a position to do it, because I felt that the empathy and affection I had for the club were the same.
‘But it gets to a point where, for them, money is more important than anything. The club wanted me to go, I have that in my head.
‘I told the directors that, but I think they didn’t have the courage to make that decision, because the manager wanted me. If I had said I wanted to leave, they would have let me go.’
Fernandes’ comments are a departure from his previous statements regarding a potential move to the Saudi Pro League.
Speaking to Daily Mail Sport in October, Fernandes had said he had been assured he remained part of the clubs plans when on their post-season trip to Malaysia in May.
Fernandes had met with chief executive Omar Berrada, director of football Jason Wilcox and Amorim.
‘I had a conversation with Omar and he said “we won’t say no but obviously we want you to stay at the club. If you want to go, we won’t say that it’s not a good offer for us because it’s massive money”,’ Fernandes told Daily Mail Sport in October.
‘I always said that if the club was like “Bruno, we want to cash in, you are 30-years-old, we want to make some money, we don’t think you can be part of the future project”, I had to find a solution for myself and I will leave – but obviously that wasn’t the case.’
The post-season tour came at a time when Al-Hilal had been pushing to sign Fernandes ahead of the FIFA Club World Cup.
Daily Mail Sport reported at the time that Fernandes had been given a deadline by the Saudi club of the end of May to decide whether he wanted to join.
Al-Hilal had made an offer to United in the region of £100million, which was not rejected. The personal terms for Fernandes were life-changing, even for a player who earns close to £300,000-a-week.
Fernandes was understood to have been offered a three-year contract worth a basic £700,000-a-week, with the deal potentially having been worth £65m-a-season including signing-on fee and bonuses.
His agent Miguel Pinho had talks in Riyadh. Fernandes spoke to Al-Hilal’s president and, in the end, decided to stay where he was.
When Fernandes was asked by Daily Mail Sport in October whether a move was still possible at the end of the season, he admitted ‘I don’t know’.
‘I don’t think they were very happy for me to reject the offer, obviously. I accept that, because the offer was very good in terms of salary. Everything was massive for me. It was a huge difference,’ Fernandes said.
‘I’ve seen a lot of people talking that I had an agreement to go already next season. If the club has done that agreement, it wasn’t made with me.
‘My agent also knows how I work. If he wants to talk to me, it will be after the World Cup. Because until then, I won’t speak to anyone.’
