Man United transfer advantage emerges as Mateus Fernandes exit could be on at West Ham
Manchester United may have given themselves an advantage when it comes to signing Mateus Fernandes from West Ham United.
Fernandes has been linked with a move to the Red Devils over the past few months after impressing in his maiden campaign at the London Stadium.
The one-cap Portugal senior international joined West Ham from Southampton in a fee rising beyond the £40million mark.
Man United will not be the only team to show an interest in Fernandes should West Ham drop out of the Premier League.
And a new transfer update has now emerged on the 21-year-old ahead of some crunch fixtures for West Ham.
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Man United have close ties to Mateus Fernandes’ agency
The Sun reported on Tuesday that Fernandes is one of a number of players being targeted by Man United this summer.
Fernandes is said to be “admired” by Old Trafford chiefs, among whom is Jason Wilcox, who was Southampton’s director of football when the midfielder arrived at St Mary’s.
| Mateus Fernandes | PL 2025-26 |
| Games (starts) | 34 (33) |
| Goals/assists | 3/3 |
| Pass success rate | 87% |
| Tackles per game | 2.9 |
| Total duels won | 56% |
Beyond that link, though, Fernandes is represented by Jorge Mendes’ Gestifute agency, who United have a close connection with.
The 20-time English champions also bought Leny Yoro and Manuel Ugarte via that agency in the past couple of years.
The same report indicates that Fernandes will likely be on his way out of East London should the worst happen and West Ham drop into the Championship.
Fernandes’ miss against Arsenal cost West Ham dearly, but the midfielder has been one of the Irons’ better performers this campaign.
West Ham may have hand forced with Fernandes exit decision
Fernandes still has three years to run on his West Ham contract, so the Hammers will not be forced into a sale.
However, that stance will change completely if relegation happens. The Irons simply cannot have high-earning players on their books.
Beyond that, millions will need to be brought in through player sales to help adapt to a world where Premier League income is no longer coming in.
If West Ham manage to finish above Tottenham and stay up, the team has to be built around players like Fernandes beyond this summer.
As strange as it is to say, the core group is there for West Ham to push on next season if they can retain key players.
But before David Sullivan and Co. can even think about that, they need Nuno Espirito Santo to keep them up by any means necessary.