Manchester United star's exit gets complicated as Champions League side switch focus to Tottenham flop - Reports
Manchester United midfielder Fred's move to Galatasaray has gotten complicated as the Turkish club have now reportedly turned their attention to Tottenham Hotspur's Tanguy Ndombele.
Journalist Alfredo Pedulla recently reported that the Red Devils have dropped Fred's price tag to £12.9 million and Galatasaray are seriously interested. United are keen on signing Moroccan midfielder Sofyan Amrabat from Fiorentina. Getting Fred off the books could help the team in that regard.
While Galatasaray were interested in the Brazilian, the Turkish giants have now turned their attention to Ndombele. The Frenchman joined Spurs from Olympique Lyon for a club-record fee of over £55 million back in 2019. He never quite managed to find his feet at the club and spent loan spells at Olympique Lyon and Serie A giants Napoli.
Ndombele has so far made 91 appearances for Spurs, scoring 10 goals and providing nine assists. The midfielder never flourished to his full abilities at the north London club.
Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano reported about Galatsaray's interest in Ndombele as he wrote on Twitter:
"Galatasaray are now considering Tanguy Ndombele as an option for the midfield. Discussions took place to be informed on conditions of the deal. Fred deal looks complicated for Gala, no agreement and currently in stand-by."
Galatasaray are now considering Tanguy Ndombele as an option for the midfield. Discussions took place to be informed on conditions of the deal. 🟡🔴
Fred deal looks complicated for Gala, no agreement and currently in stand-by. pic.twitter.com/a9mFdrdXBm
Manchester United might now need to look at other options to sort Fred's future out. A report from La Lazio Siamo Noi stated that Serie A club Lazio are interested in the Brazilian midfielder.
Fred joined the Red Devils from Shakhtar Donetsk in 2018. He has since made 213 appearances for the Old Trafford club, scoring 14 goals and providing 19 assists.
The 30-year-old, though, struggled for game time during the 2022-23 campaign as he started in only 24 out of his 56 appearances across competitions. Fred bagged six goals and six assists last term.
Paul Scholes explained why he is a big fan of Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes
Since joining Manchester United from Sporting CP in 2020, Bruno Fernandes has been a consistent performer for the Red Devils. The Portuguese was recently appointed as the club's captain as well.
Paul Scholes hailed the midfielder's vision and his fearlessness to take chances with the ball. He told United's official media (via the Red Devils' website):
“I think what Bruno has been doing for a couple of years now is he sees everything on a football pitch... I think his vision is brilliant. He’s not afraid to lose the ball, we all say at United, you have to be prepared to take risks, he’s prepared to do that, and we all know the ability he’s got.”
Since joining Manchester United, Bruno Fernandes has scored 64 goals and has provided 54 assists in 185 appearances. He will now have added responsibility on his shoulders after being appointed the captain by Erik ten Hag.