Fred has admitted that he is unsatisfied with the amount of starts he has made for Manchester United this season amid reports linking him with a summer exit.
The Brazilian midfielder, 30, has clocked up over 200 appearances for the Red Devils since joining the club from Shakhtar Donetsk back in 2018 but has been in and out of the team this season under Erik ten Hag, who signed Casemiro and Christian Eriksen last summer.
Fred has made 55 appearances in all competitions for United this term, however, only 22 of those have been starts. And with Ten Hag keen on striking a deal for Chelsea's Mason Mount, Fred was linked with a move to Premier League rivals Fulham earlier this week.
The Manchester United midfielder was spotted talking to Fulham boss Marco Silva after the two sides met in the Premier League on Sunday shortly before the Londoners' interest was confirmed by The Manchester Evening News. And Fred has now fuelled speculation that he could be on the move after hinting he has been left unhappy with the number of games he's started this term ahead of this weekend's FA Cup final.
"The club’s performance has been good, but as players we dream big and always aspire to win important trophies," Fred explained in an interview with FourFourTwo. "We know that last season our results were far from what we wanted. This season has been much better: we won the League Cup, we’re in the FA Cup final and we’ve been fighting for the top four in the Premier League.
"We’re conscious that we could have gone further in the Europa League [United lost 5-2 on aggregate to Sevilla in the quarter-finals] but, all things considered, I’ve been happy with our season. I was over the moon with my first trophy at the club, which shows that our team is on the right path after years of reconstruction.
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"In terms of my own performance, I believe I’ve played well, although I wish I’d had more minutes on the pitch. Whenever I was on the field, I think I delivered what was expected from me to help the team succeed."
The report earlier this week outlined that United were considering cashing in on Fred in the wake of interest from Fulham as Ten Hag is keen to recruit a younger midfielder in the upcoming transfer window.
As well as sourcing an elite No.9, Ten Hag is also intent on capturing Mount, who is expected to leave Stamford Bridge this summer after failing to come to terms on a new contract with Chelsea.
The midfield maestro has 'agreed personal terms' with United, who will now need to agree on a fee with the Blues in order to wrap up a deal.
