Man Utd’s proposed £60m deal under threat as rivals prepare to hijack transfer

The January transfer window is in full swing so we’ll bring you all the latest news and gossip from around the globe. Today, the latest on Man Utd’s pursuit of Bruno Fernandes…

Manchester United’s proposed £60m deal to sign Bruno Fernandes is under threat as Manchester City prepare to hijack their move for the Sporting Lisbon midfielder, according to reports.

Fernandes has been strongly linked with a move to Old Trafford this month with widespread reports last week suggesting that a deal was close to being agreed between United and Sporting Lisbon.

The Express are citing a report from the print version of Portuguese newspaper A Bola that claims Man Utd had a deal in place that would see them pay £60m including bonuses for Fernandes’ signature.

However, the proposal involved Man Utd loaning a player to Sporting and the deal stalled after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer refused to allow Andreas Pereira or Marcos Rojo be part of the agreement while Sporting rejected the chance to take goalkeeper Joel Pereira.

This has left the deal in limbo but Sky Sports News says talks will resume this week and there is a willingness from all parties to get an agreement done as Fernandes is desperate to join Man Utd this month.

However, Ole Gunner Solskjaer could be in danger of missing out on his prime transfer target as Portuguese publication Correio de Manha are reporting that Manchester City are ready to try and hijack United’s proposed move.

The newspaper says City have joined the chase to sign Fernandes and are willing to pay up to £86m to sign the 25-year-old, although the Premier League champions want to wait until the summer to conclude the deal.

That would no doubt appeal to Sporting as they would get to keep hold of their star man until the end of the season before selling him for significantly more than Man Utd’s are currently prepared to pay.

However, I would take these reports coming out of Portugal with a pinch of salt as Sporting have probably leaked news of Man City’s supposed interest to try and force Man Utd’s to improve their offer for Fernandes.

I still think United are in pole position to secure a deal and while negotiations may drag until the final days of the January window, I expect an agreement will eventually be found with Sporting Lisbon.

Solskjaer is desperate to add some creativity to his squad this month as Paul Pogba is out with an ankle injury and Marcus Rashford is facing at least two months on the sidelines with a fractured back.

Fernandes would certainly fit the bill as he’s provided 15 goals and 13 assists this season so I think he’d be a superb addition to the Manchester United squad if they could get this proposed deal over the line.