How Cristiano Ronaldo helped seal Bruno Fernandes’ Man Utd transfer after talks with Solskjaer and Portugal team-mate
CRISTIANO RONALDO helped seal Bruno Fernandes' transfer to Manchester United by talking to his Portugal team-mate and Red Devils boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
The midfielder, 25, completed his £55m transfer from Sporting Lisbon to Manchester United in January.
And after following in Cristiano's footsteps 17 years later, Fernandes credited the Juventus star for his role in making the deal happen.
He told the : "I talked about Manchester United with Cristiano. He just said good things about United.
"He said he started living his dream here and he started being a really good player here.
"I think he is happy with my transfer and I also talked with Ole and he said he asked Cristiano about me and he said good things about me which is good.
"Cristiano plays with me in the national team and he knows me, and for me he’s a good person. I want to follow his steps."
Fernandes remembers his hero Ronaldo making the switch to Old Trafford in 2003 and has hopes of emulating some of what the five-time Ballon d'Or winner achieved in Manchester - but insists he also wants to write his own history.
He said: "I followed Manchester United more when Cristiano was here. He’s a big player and I see him as an idol and I want to be in the form like Cristiano showed.
"Sporting had a friendly match against Manchester United and he played really well like he does always and of course the fans were excited about him.
"Now I want to write my history, different to Cristiano because he is the best player in the world. He has played 15 years at the top and it’s difficult to do this, but I want to give my best to write my name in the history of Manchester United."
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And the new man - who was driven into training on Friday by fellow Portuguese star Diogo Dalot - has already been hearing from former team-mates and new rivals alike.
He added: "I played with Nani, he was my captain at Sporting and I learnt some things from him. He sent me a message the other day and said he was very happy for me with my move.
"Bernardo Silva texted me on Wednesday and said I was lucky I didn’t play against him. I told him the luck was with him because if I’d played against him I will punish him!"
Bruno is eligible to make his debut this weekend against fellow top-four chasers Wolves - but Solskjaer suggested he is unlikely to start.
The Norwegian said: "It's been a hectic few days for him. He’s even had his daughter’s third birthday.
"But he’s fit enough to play, he’ll be in the squad and he’ll be involved."
Fernandes decided to take the No18 jersey at his new club, following in the footsteps of club legend Paul Scholes after the number was vacated by Ashley Young this month.
He said: "There are a lot of reasons for the No18. It’s a number I like.
"The last three years I have played as No8 because it’s the number my father had as a player and my birthday and it’s the number I like.
"No18 is also the birthday of my wife and another reason is, when I grew up, I saw Paul Scholes playing in it and for me having this shirt and this number of an amazing player is something I will enjoy. I know I have a lot of responsibility."
