Bruno Fernandes Had Rejected Ronaldo's Invitation, But Moving To Saudi Arabia Could Still Be Realized

Bruno Fernandes has the opportunity to go to Saudi Arabia in the next summer (Instagram/@manchesterunited) exchange.

JAKARTA - Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has rejected three Saudi Arabian clubs under the auspices of the PIF (Public Investment Fund).

One of the offers he refused came from Cristiano Ronaldo, who invited him to directly move to Al Nassr.

Cristiano Ronaldo took an informal approach at the end of July 2025. However, Fernandes reiterated his desire to stay in Europe for at least 12 months.

Launching talkSPORT, Fernandes was also in great demand by Al Hilal before the 2025 Club World Cup. His agent, Miguel Pinho, has even flown to Saudi Arabia to meet for a week.

Al Hilal has since expressed interest he has never officially approached Manchester United, but is ready to pay more than 80 million pounds (around Rp1.7 trillion) if given the green light by Bruno Fernandes.

The 30-year-old was tempted by the opportunity. However, after speaking with his family, he decided to stay for at least one more season with Manchester United.

"President (Al Hilal) called me and asked if I wanted to go there. They were waiting for me."

"I've spoken to the coach (Ruben) Amoram. He asked me not to go. Manchester United didn't want to sell me. They didn't need money."

"If I wanted to leave, they would have made it happen," said Fernandes.

Undaunted by Fernandes' refusal to Al Hilal and Al Nassr, Al Ittihad also contacted the Portuguese midfielder about two weeks before the transfer market in the Premier League closed on September 1, 2025.

Ittihad knew they could not run without players leaving because their foreign player quota was full. This is still in effect before the deadline for Saudi Arabia's transfer on September 10, 2025.

That's why the club prioritizes the recruitment of Roger Fernandes from Braga as the 19-year-old Portuguese winger is included in their Under-21 quota that still has room to recruit players.

Throughout the summer, news circulated that Fabinho or even N'Golo Kante could leave Al Ittihad, which of course opened up space to approach Fernandes. However, the two players turned out to remain at the club.

Manchester United has also denied that Bruno Fernandes has a release clause of 60 million pounds.

Fernandes decided it would be better to stay at Manchester United until the 2026 World Cup, especially considering that it could be his last appearance in the tournament.

However, he remains open to Saudi Arabia with negotiators still intending to sign him in the summer of 2026.

Manchester United may be tempted to sell their players next summer. You see, they are also tempted to bid Brighton midfielder Carlos Baleba, in the next 12 months, a deal that may cost more than 100 million.

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia's teams mostly see September 1 as their de facto deadline for recruiting European stars.

You see, they know that these European clubs will most likely not sell their stars without a replacement.

As a result, although there was still time before the Saudi Arabian transfer market closed, Fernandes was not expected to leave Manchester United.

Despite the surprising offer, Fernandes has not changed his mind about leaving Old Trafford this summer.

This means that Fernandes has a chance to go from Manchester United to Saudi Arabia at the end of next season. He also agreed with this.

"There is an opportunity (to leave Manchester United next summer)," said Fernandes.