Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has disclosed that the Premier League club sought to offload him this summer following reported interest from Saudi Arabian clubs.
Speaking to Portuguese channel Canal 11 on Monday, Fernandes, 31, said it was manager Rúben Amorim’s confidence in him that ultimately persuaded him to remain at Old Trafford.
“My passion and empathy for the club were the same, but there comes a point where money becomes more important to them than you,” Fernandes said.
He added: “The club wanted me to leave. I said it to the directors and I think they didn’t have the courage to make that decision because the coach wanted me. But if I had said I wanted to leave, even if the coach wanted me to stay, the club would have let me go.”
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Fernandes, who has scored 103 goals in 307 appearances for Manchester United since joining in 2020, admitted he was hurt by the hierarchy’s willingness to consider parting ways with him.
“The feeling I got from the club was, ‘if you leave, it’s not so bad for us’. That hurt me a little,” he said, as reported by Portuguese sports daily A Bola.
The midfielder also revealed that he had briefly considered a move to Saudi Arabia, following in the footsteps of compatriot Cristiano Ronaldo, who joined the Saudi league in 2023 after a tense exit from Manchester United.
