Jose Mourinho has told Real Madrid to beat Manchester United to the signing of West Ham midfielder Mateus Fernandes, according to reports in Spain.
Fernandes was signed from Southampton in a deal worth £38m plus £4m in add-ons last year but is now set to be on the move once again following West Ham’s relegation from the Premier League.
The 21-year-old impressed in his debut season with West Ham and has attracted interest from several clubs including Manchester United, Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain.
United have already begun talks over a deal to sign Fernandes with West Ham demanding an £80m transfer fee for the midfielder.
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However, Spanish newspaper AS report that Mourinho has recommended the signing of Fernandes to Real Madrid president Florentino Perez.
Madrid are holding a presidential election and if Perez is re-elected on Sunday, Mourinho will return to the Santiago Bernabeu as head coach.
Perez, who is up against the renewable energy entrepreneur, Enrique Riquelme, in Madrid’s first contested presidential election for 20 years, has also promised to submit a club-record bid for an unnamed ‘great player’ if he is re-elected this weekend.
‘On Tuesday or so, I’m going to make an offer to a major Champions League club for a great player. It would be the largest transfer fee Real Madrid has ever paid in its history,’ Perez told Horizonte on Thursday.
When asked to name his transfer target, Perez replied: ‘[Michael] Olise is a great player but it’s not Olise, it’s not [Jeremy] Doku either.
‘We’re going to make a significant offer, at least around €150m (£129.6m).
‘He needs to be a player from midfield who can go forward. And it’s not [Erling] Haaland.
‘The player is not from the Premier League, and the first thing we’ll do is talk to the club.
‘It’s a signing meant to generate excitement because that’s what it’s all about, generating excitement.’
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