AfriPulse
Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has revealed that the club were prepared to part ways with him during the summer transfer window, despite his status as a key figure at Old Trafford.
The Portugal international was strongly linked with a lucrative move to Saudi Arabia before the new season began, with speculation gathering pace around his future.
Bruno Fernandes ultimately chose to remain at United, citing both personal reasons and his attachment to the club, but his comments suggest the decision was not as straightforward as it appeared from the outside.
“The club wanted me to go [in the summer], I have that in my head,” Fernandes said in an interview with Portuguese outlet Mais Futebol.
“I told the directors this, but I think they didn’t dare to make that decision.
“I decided to stay, also because of family reasons, but because I genuinely like 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 lot. More than hurting, it makes me sad because I’m a player they have nothing to criticise about. 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.”
Fernandes, 31, provided further insight into how close he came to leaving and the emotions involved in the process.
“I knew very well that Manchester United wanted me to leave. I guess the club didn’t do so because Ruben Amorim wanted me to stay, but I could sense that even if I left, it wouldn’t be a bad thing from the club’s perspective,” he explained.
The midfielder also disclosed that he sought advice from former United forward Cristiano Ronaldo before making his final decision.
“Ronaldo gave me some advice, but the final decision was always mine. I decided to stay because I truly love this club, but loyalty isn’t valued as much as it used to be in football today,” he said.
Fernandes went on to reflect on Ruben Amorim’s early months at Manchester United, highlighting the challenges faced by the manager after his arrival.
“It was a difficult start for him. He came here after winning everything at Sporting Lisbon, only to face a team with extremely low morale,” Fernandes emphasised. “We performed well in the Europa League, but we couldn’t maintain consistency in the league.”
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