Erik ten Hag has confirmed the club are interested in signing Alvaro Fernandez following his permanent move to Benfica in the summer.
Fernandez joined United as a 16-year-old from Real Madrid, progressing through the academy with spells on loan at Preston in the Championship and back in Spain with Granada.
The left-back failed to make his first-team debut at Old Trafford, however, joining Benfica on loan last January. The Portuguese giants exercised an option to sign him permanently for just £5million in May, with Fernandez establishing himself as a key first-team player this season.
Fernandez’s thrilling performances have been particularly frustrating for United fans to watch given their shortage of left-backs with both Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia still out injured.
Speaking at a press conference on Friday, ten Hag revealed the club are still keeping close tabs on the 21-year-old with a buy-back clause on the table should he continue to impress.
‘I think the process is perfect. We loan him to Preston, he got back, then we loan him to Granada, he didn’t play so much there, and of course we, all the time, observed him and now we had the opportunity to sell him,’ ten Hag said of Fernandez.
‘But we have a buy-back [clause] so we have control of the situation, I think that’s what he needed.
‘From Preston, then go to La Liga, go to Portugal [with Benfica], every time stepping up to a higher club and a better league. Now we have to see and assess the situation if he can be an option for us.
‘But playing at Man United is not so easy, playing in the Premier League for Manchester United is not so easy. You need experience, also development.
‘You get development from playing for better clubs and in better leagues.’
Fernandez has started all but one of Benfica’s seven league games this term, playing the full 90 in the last five.
He has also shone in the Champions League, turning in a superb performance in the 4-0 win over Atletico Madrid. Diego Simeone’s side, along with La Liga giants Barcelona and Real Madrid are also closely monitoring Fernandez’s progress.
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