Fulham midfielder Andreas Pereira has outlined how his summer exit from Manchester United unfolded in light of a near-move to Flamengo.
The midfielder looked to be on the brink of signing for the Brazilian club permanently following a season-long loan spell but the outfit ultimately opted against triggering a £8.5m option-to-buy clause in his deal amid reports they wanted to try and capture a lower fee.
Fulham eventually came in with a £10m offer plus £3m in potential add-ons and Pereira secured a move to Craven Cottage instead. The playmaker will face his old employers later this month in the FA Cup quarter-finals amid his club's competition run.
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He played 75 first-team games for United but had not featured for the Reds in more than two years by the time he left following numerous other loan spells away, including to Lazio and Valencia.
Pereira has since become a key player for Fulham this season under Marco Silva. The 27-year-old has missed only one of the London club’s games this season and has featured in every Premier League fixture. He’s chalked up three goals and six assists in all so far.
Speaking to Brazilian outlet O Dia, Pereira gave an overview of how his exit from United to Fulham came to fruition. “These are things that happen in football. There was a phase at Flamengo that was difficult,” he said.
“I know what happened, I felt it first-hand. But unfortunately, in the end, when things were working out, it turned out to be too late to negotiate with Manchester United. They no longer wanted to negotiate with Flamengo.
“I understand the Flamengo part and I understand the Manchester United part, but I think the best thing for me was coming to Fulham.”
It was clear Pereira had a fond relationship with Flamengo, the talent writing a passionate goodbye on his Instagram upon his return to Manchester. “Flamengo's greatest asset is its fans. Flamengo is the people, Flamengo is the spirit… it's everywhere!” he said at the time.
“Today I am… I love Flamengo! And that, no one can change, or take away from me.”
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