Man Utd midfielder tipped for extraordinary Arsenal transfer as €50m ‘diamond’ replacement ready: ‘Take him’

Ian Wright has slammed Manchester United for their treatment of Bruno Fernandes and believes that he would be a great signing for Arsenal, as TEAMtalk reveals the Red Devils’ plan on the Portugal international following his explosive comments about the club.

In an in-depth interview with Canal 11 in November, which was released this week, Bruno Fernandes slammed Man Utd for being ready to sell him in the summer of 2025. The midfielder revealed that it was Man Utd manager Ruben Amorim who wanted to keep him at the club and revealed that he was “hurt” by the club’s “directors”.

Fernandes has been on the books of Man Utd since January 2020 and is under contract at the Premier League club until the summer of 2027, with the option for a further year.

The midfielder has been a figure of consistency over the years and is one of the few Man Utd players who has done well amid the managerial changes and off-pitch turmoil at the club.

In 307 appearances for Man Utd so far in his career, Fernandes has scored 103 goals and given 93 assists, and Arsenal legend Ian Wright has said that he would “take him” at his former club right now.

The pundit has also backed Fernandes following his explosive interview and has hammered the Man Utd board for being willing to offload him last summer.

Wright said on The Overlap: “When you look at Bruno’s quotes, it comes back to Man United being indecisive.

“So, someone comes in for Bruno Fernandes last summer… you shut that down.

“He didn’t want to go. Bruno is basically saying the club went, ‘It’s up to you if you want to leave’.

“That’s not what you want to hear when you’re the person who has basically held the club up by yourself.

“You want the club to say, “You’re not going nowhere, you’re a massive part of this’. But Manchester United didn’t do that.

“They gave him the option and said, ‘If you want to go, you can go’, What is that saying to him? I would take him tomorrow.”

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Man Utd have Bruno Fernandes replacement ready – sources

Our transfer insider, Graeme Bailey, has reported that the Man Utd owners and hierarchy are ‘shocked and annoyed’ by Fernandes’ comments.

Sources have told us that, while there was a bid from Al-Hilal for the Portuguese star last summer, Man Utd did not actively encourage it.

We understand that Man Utd are not planning to sell Fernandes in the January transfer window, which has been backed by transfer guru Fabrizio Romano.

However, Man Utd already have a replacement in mind should they have to offload Fernandes.

And transfer correspondent, Dean Jones, has reported that VfB Stuttgart midfielder Angelo Stiller is the player that Man Utd are keen on as a potential replacement for Fernandes.

Jones told us: “If Man Utd look outside the Premier League for a Bruno replacement, then I would expect Angelo Stiller to be in the mix as a target.

“For some time now, I have been hearing his name mentioned as a target, but always with the caveat that he would replace Kobbie Mainoo or Fernandes.

“At this rate, both players look like they might leave soon, so at a time when Man Utd want more tenacity in the centre of the field, I think Stiller might come into conversations.

“Stiller can play in a deep midfield role, but also create, and if they find another midfielder to go in there too, which will be the plan, then they can start looking at a long-term plan.”

Sky Germany journalist Florian Plettenberg reported Man Utd’s interest in Stiller in October and revealed that Stuttgart will want at least €50 million (£43.5m, $58m) for the 24-year-old Germany international midfielder, who was described in Breaking The Lines in March 2025 as ‘The Diamond of the Bundesliga’.

Latest Man Utd transfer news: Casemiro U-turn, ‘Calls’ for Liverpool target

Meanwhile, sources have told our transfer insider, Graeme Bailey, that Man Utd are ready to make a dramatic U-turn on their stance on Casemiro’s future.

Man Utd have made ‘calls’ to convince a top Liverpool winger target to move to Old Trafford, according to Fabrizio Romano.

And finally, a shock report in Spain has claimed that Real Madrid have made contact with Man Utd over a midfielder that Amorim does not use much.