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Manchester United given boost in signing £65m-rated midfielder in January: report

Manchester United have been handed with a boost in signing Bruno Fernandes in January with Sporting Lisbon said to be keen on clearing some of their financial debts.

The Red Devils were frequently linked with the Portuguese footballer last summer but they decided against making a formal approach to land his signature from Sporting.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has since utilised the services of Scott McTominay, Fred, Paul Pogba and Nemanja Matic for the midfield duties in the league but the latter two have been sidelined with injuries.

According to The Sun, Sporting have debts amounting to £57m and they have hence placed a £65m price tag on the services of Fernandes ahead of the winter transfer window.

The same outlet claims that Solskjaer could seek to push through a mid-season deal for the Portuguese after failing to fill the void left by Ander Herrera and Marouane Fellaini during the summer.

Fernandes is effective playing in both the central and attacking midfield positions and United are no doubt in need of creativity from the latter of those roles where Andreas Pereira has struggled to impress.

One of the prime reasons behind United’s reluctance to sign Fernandes over the summer was his average pass percentage of 75% last term and that will remain a concern, given the added difficulty of the Premier League.

Still, Fernandes has proved an effective performer with eight goals and six assists in the first half of the current league season and he should definitely provide a scoring threat with United, though not with the same level of success.