Bruno Fernandes ‘close to Man Utd contract decision’ after Ronaldo signing

Fernandes is reportedly closing in on a new deal and a huge pay hike after he was linked with Real Madrid and Barcelona following the arrival of Ronaldo at the Premier League side

Bruno Fernandes is reportedly close to signing a £250,000-per-week new deal with Manchester United, having been inspired by the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo.

The Portugal star has been linked with Real Madrid and Barcelona amid speculation over his future since United signed Ronaldo last month.

There have been questions raised over how compatible the two players are, with Fernandes having not thrived at international level in the same way as he has with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side.

The midfielder dismissed such concerns in an interview following United’s 4-1 thrashing of Newcastle on Saturday, insisting: “Good players can always play well together.”

And now Fernandes is closing in on a huge pay rise, having been persuaded to extend his contract by United’s huge investment this summer in Ronaldo, Raphael Varane and Jadon Sancho.

That’s according to The Sun, which claims the playmaker’s wages will be bumped up to more than £250,000 per week in a deal which will run until 2026.

That will add a year to his current deal – with the option of a 12-month extension remaining, meaning he could be contracted for another six years.

Fernandes is currently on £180,000 per week, according to Spotrac, but the new deal would put him on more than Harry Maguire (£189,000), Marcus Rashford (£200,000) and on a par with both Anthony Martial and Edinson Cavani.

His salary would still be dwarfed by Ronaldo’s £500,000-per-week pay packet, with David de Gea, Sancho and Varane also on more than the rest of their team-mates.

Can Bruno Fernandes and Cristiano Ronaldo thrive together? Have your say in the comments below

After Ronaldo scored twice in Saturday’s win over Newcastle, Fernandes addressed questions over how well he and his international team-mate could combine together.

“Everyone knows what Cristiano Ronaldo brought for the club and we are really happy to have him,” he told Sky Sports . “The most important, as he will say, is the result for the team. Good players can always play well together.

“We arrived at the end (of last season) with some mistakes but did really well. There has been an improvement in the club and now it is time to take the next step.”

Ronaldo followed up his double against the Magpies by opening the scoring in Tuesday’s Champions League opener against Young Boys, but United were beaten 2-1 after Aaron Wan-Bissaka was sent off and Jesse Lingard’s backpass gifted the winner.

Solskjaer’s side return to Premier League action with Saturday’s trip to West Ham, who got their Europa League campaign underway with a win away to Dinamo Zagreb on Thursday.