Manchester United look set to be handed a much-needed boost to their summer transfer budget after Fulham reportedly agreed a deal to sign forgotten man Andreas Pereira.
The 26-year-old has spent the past two seasons out on loan, most recently with Brazilian giants Flamengo, who had been set to sign Pereira permanently before a deal fell through earlier in the window. Now Fulham have stepped up to bring the midfielder in, as Marco Silva looks to add Premier League experience to his newly-promoted team.
As first reported by UOL, the Cottagers will stump up an initial £8.6 million to sign Pereira, who has one year remaining on his contract at Old Trafford. Up to £2.6m will then be paid in add-ons. His departure would help new manager Erik ten Hag in his bid to kickstart a new era at Old Trafford with signings that he wants, with his transfer budget not quite as fat as it would have been had the club qualified for the Champions League last term.
Player sales will allow Ten Hag to increase his spending spree, which the Dutch tactician hopes will include Barcelona star Frenkie de Jong and Ajax ace Antony - neither of whom will be coming cheap.
Flamengo, though, could still make a last-ditch attempt to secure Pereira's signature. Earlier this week, vice-president Marcos Braz declared in an interview with ESPN that they were still hoping to keep the one-time Brazil international. "Three months ago, it was widely reported that Flamengo had closed with Andreas," Braz explained. "A month later they said that Flamengo had left Andreas.
"And that's not it. Flamengo is still looking for an alternative for the player to stay here. It's very difficult , a very complex situation. He is a new player, who has a lot of market, and from a financially powerful club. So when you go to discuss some terms, you have limits to move forward on this topic, but Flamengo still works to keep the player."
Pereira - who graduated from the Red Devils' famous academy in 2014 before loans with Granada, Valencia, Lazio and Flamengo - most prominently featured for United under former manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer between 2018 and 2020. Belgium-born Pereira has since 52 appearances for Flamengo, scoring seven goals.
Sadly, his time in Rio de Janeiro is so-far mostly remembered for an unfortunate mistake in the Copa Libertadores final, getting caught on the ball in his own half and gifting it to Palmeiras striker Deyverson, who slotted home in the 95th minute to give his side the illustrious South American trophy.
Even after the final, Pereira affirmed that he wanted to stay put, hoping to make amends for his error. "My wish was always to stay here at Flamengo," he declared to ESPN. "And now we're going to do everything. We'll talk to president Landim and Marcos Braz to make this possible. Of course, I have a feeling that I owe the fans a title. As I told them, they can count on me, I'll do my best so that next year we can come out with these titles here."
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Recently, newly-appointed Flamengo boss Dorival Junior also made clear his wish for Pereira to remain part of their squad. "Players of this level, players with this potential, are few in Brazil," Junior added.
"I have no doubt that this boy can still grow a lot, he can evolve a lot. How will it happen? I don't know, but it would be really nice if we could hold onto this kid because he has a lot of qualities. He is a player that draws attention in any way. He has growth potential, players of that level are scarce at the moment within this country."
However, with Fulham stepping in and Flamengo needing to sell before they can offer United the kind of deal that's easier to achieve for a Premier League rival, a return to England looks increasingly likely.
