Fulham reportedly remain in talks with Manchester United fringe midfielder Fred, who is set to hold an “important meeting” with Turkish giants Galatasaray in the next 48 hours.
Galatasaray are reportedly in the lead to sign Manchester United midfielder Fred ahead of Fulham before the end of the summer transfer window. Turkish journalist Rudy Galetti has stated that a crucial meeting is set to take place in the next 48 hours between the player and Gala in a bid to push through the transfer to Istanbul.
Recent reports claim that the midfielder has already agreed personal terms with the Turkish club.
🔥Galatasaray, Fred ile yıllık maaş ve bonus maddelerinde anlaşmaya vardı.
Galatasaray ile Manchester United arasındaki pazarlıklar devam ediyor. pic.twitter.com/6XrpjbcShx
— Erdal Bozkurt (@erdalbozkurt25) July 27, 2023
Fred joined United from Shakhtar Donetsk for £47 million in the summer of 2018, but he has never really lived up to the lofty expectations. The Brazilian has shown plenty of heart and desire, which endeared themselves to the United faithful, but barring the exception of a string of consistent, solid displays under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, his tenure at Old Trafford has largely been underwhelming.
His work rate has always been impressive, but his distribution has been bang-average at best, albeit he has showcased the ability to pop up with goals from midfield every now and then. Manager Erik ten Hag wants midfielders who are comfortable with the ball at their feet, and Fred does not fall into that category for him.
The recent arrival of Mason Mount from Chelsea and strong interest in Fiorentina playmaker Sofyan Amrabat have cast major doubt over Fred’s future at the club. Youngster Kobbie Mainoo is also expected to be fairly involved for the first team in the new season, which would, in theory, make it even harder for Fred to secure regular starts if he stayed at Old Trafford.
United are planning to offload at least two surplus midfielders in this window as they need to generate some extra cash through sales in order to continue their summer spending. In turn, the 30-year-old combative has been linked with moves to both Galatasaray and Fulham.
The reigning Super Lig champions, for one, have put the Brazilian at the top of their summer wishlist after they wrapped up the high-profile captures of Wilfried Zaha and Mauro Icardi.
Manchester United have already rebuffed an opening offer worth €10 million from Galatasaray just over two weeks ago. The bid is believed to have fallen way short of United’s asking price, but now they are ready to try again, and face-to-face discussions with the player’s reps to sell the project are imminent.
Fulham also held initial talks earlier in the transfer window, but they have so far been reluctant to meet United’s asking price, which is considered steep for a player in the final year of his contract.
Fred was spotted have a long conversation with Cottagers boss Marco Silva after their clash at Old Trafford last season, adding fuel to speculation that he could move to Craven Cottage this summer. It remains to be seen whether Fred will make the move to Turkey or extend his Premier League stay with Fulham in the coming days.
