Bruno Fernandes is reportedly ready to sign with Manchester United as the latter made adjustments on the offers sheet presented to Sporting Lisbon. A breakthrough in the negotiation that dragged on for weeks finally came when the Red Devils increased their proposed payment to €55 million.
It is understood that the talking parties have agreed in principle on the terms of the deal, which will see the Portugal international moving to Old Trafford and stay until 2024.
According to Bleacher Report, Fernandes will be flying in to Manchester on Wednesday and will undergo medical checks. Once he is cleared, he'll be ready to sign a new contract and beat the January transfer window deadline on Friday.
A previous disagreement in the contract was apparently ironed out, specifically the terms governing the bonuses that Fernandes will be entitled to. Sporting gave the deal the green light as the club won the assurance of collecting up to €10 million, which in the new contract will be dictated by more realistic conditions.
Also, Sporting finally thumbed up the agreement when United agreed on the demand that the Portuguese club will get 10 percent of the proceeds in the future sale of Fernandes.
For his part, Fernandes will be cashing in on bonuses that could reach €15 million, that is, if the Red Devils will win the Premier League and the Champions League. More incentives await the midfielder if he wins the top honor of the Ballon d'Or.
In the end, the total payment that Fernandes will be collecting over the next four years and a half will amount to €80 million, which was the original asking price of Sporting. United, however, applies some tweaks on the terms that made parts of the fee collectible based on specific milestones.
According to Metro, local media reports from Portugal indicated that Fernandes has wanted to play in the Premier League but with no particular team in mind. He admitted that any team on the competition would be an exciting prospect for him.
Asked if he preferred ending up with Manchester, the midfielder said: "Anything really."
Fernandes has been hot on the radar of the struggling United as he recorded 20 goals and 13 assists in the past season. In the current, the Sporting star kicked in 14 goals already in 28 appearances and padded that stats with 14 assists.
His acquisition by United is quite timely as the club will need to plug scoring voids created by the sidelining of Paul Pogba, Marcus Rashford, and Scott McTominay. It remains to be seen though if the midseason addition of Fernandes will boost the chance of United to at least finish the season in the Top 4 of the Premier League table.
