Gary Neville has welcomed reports Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes is set to turn down a lucrative move to Saudi Arabia.
The 30-year-old Portugal international has been the subject of speculation linking him with a £100million switch to Al Hilal, with the Saudi Pro League side reportedly prepared to pay him £700,000 per week.
Though United did not comment when contacted by the PA news agency, stories emerged on Tuesday suggesting the midfielder does not want to make such a move at this stage of his career.
That news would give head coach Ruben Amorim a huge lift as he tries to reshape the squad after a dismal season.
United endured their worst finish of the Premier League era, finishing 15th, with Fernandes one of the few players to emerge with credit.
Former United and England defender Neville told Sky Sports News: “It’s significant.
“I think that there was an element of this situation that meant United getting that level of money, for someone of Bruno’s age, obviously, you couldn’t say that it would have been a bad deal.
“But, on the other hand, Manchester United’s star player – only player at times – for the last four, five, six years, has been Bruno Fernandes. He’s so important.
“The fact that he wants to stay, the fact that he wants to go through this and come out the other side, because it would have been easy for him at the end of this season to say, ‘Look, I’m done here’, will endear him towards Manchester United fans even more.
“To turn that money down at a point where Manchester United are at their lowest ebb and say, ‘No, I want to fight through this, I want to see it through the other side, I want to come out and achieve things,’ I think it says a lot about him as a person, as a character.
“The club needs people who are going to run through a brick wall for them.”
United have already made one move in the transfer market this summer by signing Brazil forward Matheus Cunha from Wolves.
They are also being heavily linked with Brentford forward Bryan Mbeumo.
Departures could include Jadon Sancho, although latest reports have suggested Chelsea are prepared to pay a penalty fee to escape an obligation to make his current loan permanent.
Neville said: “They need players who are going to come in and hit the ground running and Cunha and Mbeumo have got obviously Premier League experience.
“I know that Ruben Amorim has this system where he plays these two players in behind a striker. If those two players are Mbeumo and Cunha then Manchester United will at least be able to travel quickly from deep positions into attacking positions because they can both run.
“We know the likes of Sancho, (Marcus) Rashford, Antony, and probably (Alejandro) Garnacho are going to leave, so they need definitely players in those positions.”
