Man United complete Bruno Fernandes transfer as Portugal star seals £67.8million deal

Manchester United have completed the signing of Bruno Fernandes from Sporting Lisbon, in a potential £67.8million transfer.

The Portugal international midfielder, 25, has put pen-to-paper on a five-and-a-half-year deal, to seal his protracted move to Old Trafford.

United have landed Fernandes, a player they first scouted at Udinese in 2015 and whom they have monitored extensively in the last 18 months, after moving swiftly following late interest from Barcelona.

United will pay an initial £46.6million, with two further add-on payments of £8.5m and £12.7m due on completion of certain clauses.

That could see the total package reach £67.8million - some £10million less than the figure demanded by Sporting earlier this month as they played hardball over their star man - with the aforementioned clauses also dependant on Champions League qualification, club appearances, and personal milestones

Fernandes could now make his Premier League debut in Saturday's early evening kick-off against Wolves.

United were interested in signing Fernandes last summer but decided against pursuing the attacking midfielder despite a spectacular campaign in 2018-19, where he struck 33 goals from 53 games for Sporting.

Fernandes has scored a further 15 goals in 28 games this term for his club and emerged as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's first choice in January, as United were made clear that potential alternatives James Maddison and Jack Grealish wouldn't be on offer until the summer at the earliest.

Barcelona made a late play to sign Fernandes from Sporting, with agent Jorge Mendes seeking to put together a deal which would see Fernandes move to Camp Nou before being immediately loaned to Valencia - with Spain striker Rodrigo heading in the opposite direction.

But the Catalan giants wouldn't have paid the majority of the transfer fee up front, and with Sporting's need for money now amid their own financial issues, United remained in pole position and finally agreed a deal to secure Fernandes' signature.