Manchester United’s deal for Bruno Fernandes almost done

Manchester United might sign Bruno Fernandes from Sporting Lisbon in the coming days, according to reports in the media.

Matt Judge has been credited with the deal for the 25-year-old Portuguese international, with a contract worth around £100,000 a week.

It is not clear if United are going to let other players to go in the other direction, with Marcos Rojo one of the players linked with his former club. However there is speculation that no player will be leaving in part-exchange, meaning they made need to pay around £60 million up front for Fernandes.

The move has been assisted by Jorge Mendes, an agent that United have used on many occasions for their existing squad and in order to facilitate arrivals.

United are desperate for midfield reinforcements. They have lost Ashley Young to Inter Milan, with a deal set to close in the coming days. Additionally, there are injuries to both Scott McTominay and Paul Pogba, who are out of action for a couple of months.

The club take on Liverpool on Sunday and there is almost no chance that he will be registered to play for United then, but he could possibly feature for United in the second leg of their League Cup semi-final against Manchester City, who they trail 3-1 from the first game.

The midfielder could still play one more match for Sporting, as the side are due to take on local rivals Benfica on Friday night. He could be asked to play in such a big match before finally confirming his move to Manchester United.

United have also been linked with Boubakary Soumare, who joined Lille on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain. The club do need more than one midfielder if deals are possible, because Nemanja Matic is also expected to leave for Italy at the end of his contract.