Manchester United still want to keep Bruno Fernandes, but contract negotiations have stalled, and the club now has another issue to resolve before they can get a new deal over the line.
Fernandes’ current contract is officially due to expire in 2027, although Manchester United hold an option to extend it by another year. That gives the club some protection, but INEOS remain keen to agree a longer-term deal with their captain.
The two sides are still talking, with Juventus among the clubs watching the situation. United, though, have no intention of allowing Fernandes to reach the end of his deal without making an attempt to secure his future.
Bruno Fernandes contract talks complicated by Rashford salary
Fabrizio Romano says the negotiations are about more than Fernandes’ wages. The length of the contract and the potential release clause are also being discussed.
“There is still no agreement,” Romano said on the Here We Go Podcast.
He added that United are still in control because of the extension option, but the talks need to continue on several points.
One complication is Marcus Rashford’s return. The England international came back to United with a significant salary, meaning the club’s wage structure has shifted again.
Romano explained: “Since Marcus Rashford returned to Manchester United with a huge salary, obviously the structure has changed again, and so the salary is a point, but it’s also about the length of the contract, about the release clause.”
United had been expected to make Fernandes their highest-paid player. That now appears less straightforward.
The next few months could decide whether he gets the long-term deal he wants at Old Trafford. The task for United is finding an agreement that rewards their captain without creating another problem inside the squad’s wage structure.
