MANCHESTER UNITED HAVE confirmed the signing of Bruno Fernandes from Sporting Lisbon, with the Portuguese midfielder joining on a five-and-a-half year deal with an option to extend to a further year.
The Premier League club announced yesterday that they had agreed a deal to sign the attacking midfielder, with the player putting pen to paper at Old Trafford today.
It’s being reported that the deal is worth up to £68 million (€80 million).
“My love of Manchester United really started when I used to watch Cristiano Ronaldo play and ever since then I have been a big fan of this great club,” 25-year-old Fernandes told the club’s official website.
For me to now play for Manchester United feels incredible. I have worked hard to get to this moment and I can promise the fans that I will give everything for the badge to help bring us more success and trophies.
“I want to thank Sporting for everything they have done for me. It is surreal to hear the nice words that have been said about me from players that used to play for this team.
“A massive thank you to Ole [Gunnar Solskjaer] and everyone at Manchester United for the trust they have shown in me and I can’t wait to start to repay that on the pitch.”
🔴 🤝 🇵🇹#MUFC is delighted to announce the signing of Bruno Fernandes!
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) January 30, 2020
And United boss Solskjaer welcomed the former Sporting ace, who chipped in with 63 goals and 52 assists in 137 appearances for the Portuguese outfit.
“We have been tracking Bruno for many months and everyone here has been tremendously impressed with all his attributes and what he will bring to this team,” he said.
Most importantly he is a terrific human being with a great personality and his leadership qualities are clear for all to see.
“Bruno’s goals and assists stats speak for themselves, he will be a fantastic addition to our team and he will help us push on in the second part of the season.
“The winter break is coming at a perfect time for us to integrate Bruno into the squad and for him to get to know his team-mates.”
With Paul Pogba and Scott McTominay facing prolonged periods of absence, United had been heavily linked with a move for the 19-time capped Portuguese international.
Negotiations between the clubs had been ongoing over the past few weeks, with Barcelona joining the race in the latter end of proceedings.
Fernandes has been central to winning three domestic cups in his two full seasons at Sporting, after beginning his senior career in Italian football with Novara, and enjoying spells with Serie A sides Udinese and Sampdoria.
He is eligible to make his United debut against Wolves on Saturday.
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