Ruben Amorim has stressed his desire to keep Manchester United skipper Bruno Fernandes amid interest from Saudi Arabia, calling him “one of the top players in the world”.
The 30-year-old playmaker has starred for the Red Devils since joining from Sporting Lisbon in 2020, including scoring a brace in last Thursday’s 3-0 Europa League semi-final first-leg win at Athletic Bilbao.
The build-up to the return fixture at Old Trafford has been dominated by talk of interest in the United captain, with Al-Hilal reportedly plotting a big-money swoop.
Amorim revealed in March he had told the Portugal international he was “not going anywhere” following links to Real Madrid, with the head coach striking a similar tone amid talk of a summer move to Saudi Arabia.
Our skipper leads by example 💥©️
💪 @B_Fernandes8#MUFC || #UEL pic.twitter.com/17DLaZGcsF
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) May 7, 2025
“I think it is easy to understand (his importance) – not just because of the numbers but the way he plays, the importance that he has during his five years here,” Amorim said.
“He is a top player, we need top players. He is a leader, he’s the captain, so he’s really important.
“It’s normal that a lot of clubs want a player like Bruno, like (Alejandro) Garnacho, like others.
“But we want to keep the best players and Bruno is clearly one of the top players in the world, so our idea didn’t change. We want Bruno here.”
