Bruno Fernandes says Manchester United pushed for his exit

Bruno Fernandes, Manchester Uniteds captain, shared with Portuguese journalists that the Premier League side sought to transfer him out this summer following bids from Saudi teams.

However, the 31 year old noted that head coach Ruben Amorim included him in his future setup, which ultimately persuaded him to remain at Old Trafford.

"My dedication and connection to the club stayed unchanged, yet there is a stage where finances take priority over the player for them," Fernandes stated to Canal 11, a broadcaster linked to the Portuguese Football Federation, on Monday.

"The club encouraged my departure. I mentioned this to the executives, and I believe they lacked the resolve to proceed since the manager valued my presence.

"Yet, had I expressed a desire to depart, despite the managers wish for me to remain, the club would have approved it."

Fernandes, with 103 goals across 307 outings for Man Utd in various competitions since his 2020 arrival, also felt pained by the leaderships readiness to release him.

"The impression from the club was, 'your exit would not trouble us much'. That stung a bit," he added, as per reports on the site of Portuguese sports paper A Bola.

The midfielder mentioned contemplating a transfer to Saudi Arabia, emulating fellow countryman Cristiano Ronaldo, who joined the nation in 2023 post his bitter split from Old Trafford.