A contract running until 2029, with a mechanism that keeps extending it the more Bruno Fernandes stays on the pitch, is the structure Manchester United are exploring in talks with their captain. The novel element, a length that reacts to his involvement, is designed to reward availability without locking the club into a long guaranteed term for a player who would be nearly 35 when the deal runs out.
Fernandes’ current contract expires in June 2027, with a one-year club option through 2028. United hold the leverage, but the Portuguese midfielder’s camp is pushing for clarity on both length and salary while European clubs circle.
A new agreement is not believed to be imminent. Age is the primary obstacle, as the club weighs how far into a player’s thirties it is prepared to commit significant money.
The Salah warning behind the clause
Liverpool handed Mohamed Salah a two-year extension in April 2025, watched his level drop sharply, then let him leave on a free transfer in the summer of 2026. He signed for Turkish side Trabzonspor in August. Senior European clubs are now writing that scenario into every long-term offer they make to a star in his thirties.
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That is the trap United are trying to design around. An appearance-based clause ties the length of the deal to Fernandes continuing to play the way he does now, a one-way bet the club cannot easily lose, because a drop-off would simply stop the extension clock.
The €65m sticking point
The second obstacle sits in the small print. Fernandes’ current deal carries a release clause of around €65m, roughly £55m, that only applies to offers from outside the Premier League. United want to either strip it out or push it high enough that it stops functioning as an exit price, according to recent reporting on the state of talks.
Juventus and other European sides are watching, which is why the number matters. Fabrizio Romano has described the position bluntly.
“There is still no agreement…they have few months to sort the situation,” he said.
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The wage side has an added complication. Marcus Rashford, back in Manchester after a loan spell, earns around £390,000 a week including bonuses, a figure that reset the club’s pay structure after it had been pulled down over the summer. Sources close to the negotiations have called it “nonsensical” to say Rashford’s return is directly affecting Fernandes’ demands, but the arithmetic of what a 32-year-old captain is worth, when the forward beneath him is on that money, is not easy to ignore.
United still hold the option year through 2028 as a safety net, and the talks are expected to continue through the autumn with no deadline publicly set.
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