Atletico Madrid forward Joao Felix has revealed that he was not aware of any interest from Manchester United this summer following reports that the Premier League giants were keen on acquiring his services.
Felix was one of a host of high-profile names linked with a move to Old Trafford during the summer transfer window following the appointment of Erik ten Hag.
The Dutchman was eager to acquire attacking reinforcements and eventually landed his top target, Antony, from Ajax for a fee that could rise to £85million. But before United had struck a deal with the Dutch giants for the Brazilian winger, it was claimed that the Old Trafford hierarchy held talks with Atletico over Felix.
Speculation over a deal was heightened by the fact that Atleti boss Diego Simeone was interested in Cristiano Ronaldo, who was desperate to quit Old Trafford for a team which could offer him Champions League football.
Ultimately, Ronaldo and Felix stayed put, with the latter insisting that he was happy in the Spanish capital. The 22-year-old has now claimed that nobody approached him at all with regards to rumoured interest from Manchester United. Felix told Marca : "Nothing came to me. The presidents deal with these things. I’m here."
Felix has been plagued by injuries since moving to Madrid and has struggled to live up to the lofty expectations that were placed upon him following his £113m switch from Benfica in 2019.
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He has managed just 29 goals for the club and has failed to score so far this term - although he has clocked up three assists in five games.
While Felix has made a fairly modest start to the new campaign for Simeone's side, Ten Hag's primary target, Antony, made an instant impact at Old Trafford - just as his manager predicted - by scoring against Arsenal last Sunday.
Antony was an integral part of the Ajax side that clinched the Dutch title under Ten Hag last season, netting eight goals and four assists across 23 league appearances, before he was lured away to Old Trafford.
Ten Hag was adamant that the winger would have no problems in replicating those returns in the Premier League.
"He proved himself already. Champions League, Brazilian national team and Olympic gold medalist," Ten Hag said after a deal was struck with Ajax. "Brazil has a number of players so high talented. You can select two or three teams and he can deal with the pressure. He will bring temperament and creativity.
"Also for him it is a new start and he has to adapt to the team, to the Premier League and to the high intensity. But I'm sure he will adapt."
