‘They want him to stay’ – David Ornstein expects Bruno Fernandes to remain at Manchester United

There has been a lot of uncertainty over Bruno Fernandes in the past 24 hours.

From team-mates having serious doubts about the captain’s future to a report from The Sun suggesting that the FA Cup final will be his United swansong, there is never a shortage of speculation when stories develop at Old Trafford.

The article in question, written by Neil Custis, made it sound like Fernandes is on the verge of leaving United.

An updated version of events from The Athletic’s David Ornstein claims it is likely that Fernandes will remain at the club beyond the summer deadline unless there is a huge unexpected turn of events.

Fernandes has been United’s best signing of the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era. Nobody comes close and it would be a blow to lose him this summer.

That said, we are expecting a squad overhaul in the summer, which means a few big names will be sent on their way. I didn’t expect Fernandes to be one of those.

Speaking on The Athletic’s ‘Daily Briefing’ podcast on May 15th, Ornstein said that he heard of a crunch meeting between United and Fernandes which all but ensured that the Portugal international would be staying at United for the foreseeable future.

Ornstein said: “What we received on The Athletic on Tuesday is that a meeting was called at United’s Carrington training ground last week.

“It went on for quite some time, it was lengthy – I’m hearing a couple of hours – in which both parties wanted some clarity on the way forward. Manchester United were keen to express that they want him to stay, and Bruno Fernandes wanted to hear that his ambitions can be met and that Manchester United is the right place for him to remain.

“There’s a feeling that the questions Bruno Fernandes wanted answering were done so satisfactorily. The meeting was explained to me as being a bit of a meeting of minds, and that they are on the same page.

“So despite all of this scrutiny around Bruno Fernandes, I think the situation is pretty clear – he’s going to be staying, barring an unexpected turn of events.”

Let us know in the comments section if you think Fernandes will still be at United next season or elsewhere.

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