Man Utd star Fernandes to make FA Cup final his ‘swansong’ amid sensational Barcelona swap claims
Bruno Fernandes ready to make the FA Cup final against arch-rivals Man City later this month his Man Utd ‘swansong’, according to reports.
The Portugal international tasted a bit of success last season when the Red Devils won the League Cup in a promising first season under Ten Hag.
However, this campaign has not gone well with Man Utd currently eighth in the Premier League and out of Europe by Christmas after finishing bottom of their Champions League group.
They do have a chance of winning the FA Cup this season but they will face the toughest of challenges when they come up against Man City at Wembley on May 25.
Fernandes is widely regarded as the best post-Sir Alex Ferguson signing but the Portugal international has not won anywhere near enough silverware for his ability over his four-and-a-half seasons at Man Utd.
And the Man Utd midfielder recently hinted that he could explore his options in the summer but that he was focused on the rest of this season first.
MORE ON MAN UTD FROM F365
👉 Arsenal go again, Hojlund struggle, Blades doomed, Spurs daft – 10 things we got right this season
👉 Gary Neville doesn’t think Rasmus Hojlund can be Man Utd ‘great’ as Carragher asks ‘what does he do?’
👉 Five reasons Man Utd, Ratcliffe should not sack Ten Hag: Injuries, Carabao Cup, FA Cup success…
When asked recently about his future, Fernandes said: “Obviously, it doesn’t just depend on me, does it?
“A player always has to want to be here, but at the same time, you have to want him to stay. At the moment, I feel there’s that on both sides.
“I’m not thinking too much about the future, not least because, obviously, this season hasn’t been at the level I’d hoped for, either individually or collectively, so far.
“So, if you want me to be very honest, if I have to think about not continuing in the Premier League, it won’t be until after the Euros because nothing will be able to take my focus away from the FA Cup final and the Euros, as there’s nothing more important than that at the moment.”
There have been rumours Man Utd could attempt to use him in a sensational swap deal to land Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong, while there is reported interest from Saudi Arabia.
And now The Sun claim that Fernandes is ‘ready for the FA Cup final to be his Manchester United swansong’ with the Red Devils captain ‘considering a summer move after four-and-a-half seasons at Old Trafford’.
Casemiro has also been linked with a move away from Man Utd this summer and transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has brought an update on the potential for both of them to end up in Saudi Arabia in the summer.
Romano wrote in his Caught Offside column: “Since the Saudi Pro League project started more than one year ago, Bruno Fernandes has always been one of the players most appreciated by Saudi bosses, but at the moment it’s nothing concrete.
“Fernandes is fully focused on Manchester United and there are no talks – Bruno will not discuss anything until he knows more about the project at United, and possibly the change in manager, so there are many things to clarify at United first. Meanwhile, Fernandes has always been super committed to the club, so let’s see what happens.
“I do, however, expect Casemiro to leave United this summer. Saudi clubs really want Casemiro, but we’ll have to see which clubs, and how much they want to invest in terms of salary. But the interest from Saudi is there, and also United are open to letting Casemiro leave, so there are very good chances to see Casemiro moving to Saudi this summer.
“Casemiro has had a difficult time at United, but in my opinion, Casemiro remains a legend of the game for what he did at Real Madrid. At Man United all players are struggling, not just him… it’s a general problem, not a single player. We could mention 15 players not performing well for United, and many things not working.”
