Bruno Fernandes demands key promise from Man United to stay at the club

Bruno Fernandes demands key promise from Man United to stay at the club

Manchester United skipper Bruno Fernandes has set a clear condition to the club in order for him to remain.

Leading the way

Fernandes has been the main man at United since his arrival from Sporting CP in 2020. He has arguably been the best signing the club has made since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement.

He has continued to lead from the front this season, with the Portuguese playmaker registering an impressive eight goals and providing an additional 16 assists. He broke David Beckham’s assist record last month to become the United player with the most assists in a Premier League campaign.

Fernandes is just four away from matching, and possibly surpassing, Kevin De Bruyne and Thierry Henry’s Premier League record (20).

Yet, there have been murmurs that an exit this summer could be on the cards. Last summer, he attracted strong interest from the Saudi Pro League but he eventually turned down a mega proposal from the Gulf nation in favour of staying at Old Trafford.

Saudi clubs are still keeping tabs on his situation, while there have also been suggestions that European heavyweights like Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain want to add him to their ranks. United want to keep Fernandes and he has now informed them what they must do for this to happen.

Fernandes’ demand

Speaking to The Telegraph, Fernandes called on United to promise him that they will do everything to be a competitive outfit.

He told the newspaper, “Everyone that comes to Man United wants to win every trophy. No one thinks in coming to the club that we’re going to fight for one or two trophies in six years. You want to fight for all of them.”

“Then we went to three finals and didn’t win. That can happen. But at least you’ve been there in the fight. We were close. And what I said to the club every time that I spoke with them, what I want from the time I’m here, I want to compete. Because if I compete, I will be close to winning.”

“If I don’t compete, there’s no chance I’m going to get close to anything. So, the main thing that the club understood is this: it’s 2013 that they last won the Premier League. That’s too long for a club like Man United. Being now so long without winning a Premier League is not normal.”

“As a player, you have to understand that the fans, the expectation, will always be that we want to come back and win the Premier League.”

Fernandes continued, “As players, we have that expectation when we come to Man United. It doesn’t change. I know people will think: ‘You’re going to get more money, you can get better contracts.’ No, you come to Man United because you want to win trophies. Because money you can get anywhere.”

“A lot of clubs in the Premier League pay well, a lot of clubs in Italy, Spain, they will pay you a lot. But you come to the club because of the history, because of what you want to achieve and what you think you can achieve.”

“What I always say to the club is: ‘You can’t promise me that I’m going to win the Premier League. That’s impossible. But if you promise me that we’re going to be competitive and we’re going to be there at the end… that’s all I need to know. Because then it’s on me to become the best version of myself, to help everyone around to become the best version of themselves, to become the club we want to be.

Fernandes and his teammates return to action on Monday when they host Leeds United. Kick-off is at 20:00 GMT.

Featured image Carl Recine via Getty Images

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