Bruno Fernandes has revealed that his dream was to play for Manchester United – but he admitted he was close to joining Tottenham last summer back when Mauricio Pochettino was in charge.
The talented midfielder was linked with a move to both Spurs and United throughout the whole of the summer window, but Daniel Levy wasn’t willing to match Sporting Lisbon’s asking price, whilst Fernandes was unable to agree a move to Old Trafford – meaning he remained in the Portuguese capital.
The 25-year-old continued to impress for Sporting during the first half of the 2019-2020 campaign, contributing to 15 goals in 17 Primeira Liga matches, which led to him earning his dream move to the Red Devils in the January window in a £67.7 million deal.
And Fernandes has started his United career in impressive form, scoring three times and adding four assists in all competitions – including five in as many Premier League games – as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s have moved into contention for a Champions League place.
Speaking in an Instagram live, Fernandes said: “The first club that was close to signing me was Tottenham with [Mauricio] Pochettino.
“But I don’t know, maybe they thought the amount Sporting wanted was too much so in that moment Sporting decided they don’t want to sell.
“Tottenham came in the summer but Manchester was in January. Maybe Tottenham came again in January, but when I knew Manchester was interested I just wanted to talk to Manchester.
“Manchester was my dream team in England so I am happy because I have the chance to go to a team that I always dreamed about you know.
“At that time [last summer] it was Tottenham that was closer to me. There were other teams from France and one team from the Spanish league, but for me, when I talked, the first team was Manchester.”
