Bruno Fernandes rejects second Manchester United contract offer

In theory, the current contract stand-off between Manchester United and Bruno Fernandes is not a big deal.

It is usual for the first, second and sometimes quite a few more offers to be rejected as part of the rough and tumble of negotiations.

United do have the option to trigger an option to add an extra year. However, there is reason why both sides might be wary to commit beyond that at this stage.

On Fernandes’ part, there is a clear desire to compete for the biggest prizes. He can see the best years of his career drifting away. Yet again United have failed to build on a season of promise and he will now be wanting to see what impact Mauricio Pochettino has when he eventually arrives from the United States.

Fernandes was coveted by the Saudi Pro League 18 months ago, although the feeling has been he would prefer to stay in Europe.

On United’s side, they will have noted Fernandes’ alarming drop-off from the levels he hit last season, when he broke the Premier League assists record and won all the major player of the year honours.

Liverpool committed a huge amount of money to Mohamed Salah’s last contract and that turned out to be a heavy financial burden. United will not want to get saddled with a major contract over an extended period for an underperforming player.