Declan Rice will choose to sign for Arsenal over Manchester United or Manchester City when he leaves West Ham in 2023, Bruno Fernandes has commented on the England midfielder
Bruno Fernandes admits he was heartbroken when Rice overlooked a move to Man United (Image: Getty)
Bruno Fernandes has admitted he was heartbroken when Declan Rice chose to join Arsenal, insisting he believes the midfielder was the ideal signing for Manchester United. The former West Ham captain was heavily linked with a move to Old Trafford as the club looked for a midfielder in 2021 amid the expected departure of Paul Pogba.
Rice has been on United’s radar for quite some time, with Mirror Football reporting that the midfielder has asked United players questions about life at the club. Jesse Lingard was in the England squad at the time, and Rice is said to have spoken to both Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw about United.
Then-manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær later admitted that negotiations had taken place over Rice’s contract, saying he was a player he “really liked”. In the end, no deal was finalized and United ended up spending a lot of money on Raphael Varane.
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Two years later, Rice completed his move to Arsenal for an initial £100m, rising with a further £5m in add-ons, making him the most expensive English player in 2023.
Fernandes openly admitted he wished the England international had chosen Old Trafford instead of the Emirates. In an interview with Joel Beya, he said: “I’ve always said that Rice was a Man United player and I was really sad when he chose to go to Arsenal.”
“I always thought he would be a great fit for our club.”
Fernandes wanted Rice to move to Man United over Arsenal
Meanwhile, Solskjaer expressed his strong admiration for Rice, despite the fact that it has been many years since he left the club. Appearing on the Stick to Football podcast, the Norwegian said: “Well, I was interested, but I really, really like him as a player.
“We’ve talked about him a few times and I think we’ve done well with him in midfield. I think he’s got good feet to cover the pitch. I think he’s improved a lot in his playmaking as well.”
Interest in Rice emerged just a year after United signed Fernandes from Sporting CP for £47m, and the pair would have formed an ideal partnership in midfield. Rice is widely considered as one of Europe’s elite midfielders who could strengthen any team on the continent.
Although they do not share a locker room, both players have a strong mutual respect and practiced together during summer camp in Portugal three years ago.
Fernandes, who at the time had postponed his return to Carrington following Portugal’s announcement to take part in Euro 2024, trained with Rice at the Algarve’s campus facilities as part of a group that also included Joao Cancelo and James Maddison.
Footage from the session showed Rice hugging Fernandes after the Portuguese midfielder hit the post with his first volley during shooting practice. Fernandez later reposted a photo of the two during the session, writing, “It was a pleasure working together,” along with a handshake emoji.
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Fernandes won the Football Writers’ Association Player of the Year award this season ahead of the Arsenal midfielder. However, the Portuguese star will clash with Rice for the Professional Footballers’ Association Player of the Year award.
Arsenal have three players on their shortlist: Rice, Gabriel Magalhães and David Raya. Manchester City’s Antoine Semenyo and Erling Haaland also featured, while Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White and Brentford striker Igor Thiago rounded out the line-up.
Fernandes has played in 32 Premier League games this season, scoring 21 assists (in all competitions) and scoring eight goals, putting him just shy of Kevin De Bruyne and Thierry Henry’s record of 20 assists in a single Premier League season.
It has been another exceptional season for the United captain, whose performances have soared since Michael Carrick replaced Ruben Amorim in January. He also played a key role in United’s bid to qualify for the Champions League.
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