Man Utd are in talks to sign one of Europe’s “talented players”.

It’s easy to forget that Manchester United were a team going nowhere before the arrival of Bruno Fernandes, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s first full season managing the goalscoring season at the time.

The last game before Fernandes’ £56m signing in late January 2020 saw United lose 2-0 at home to Burnley, their 12th defeat in the Premier League since Solskjaer was appointed permanent manager last March. They had only won 11 times in that time.

At the end of 2019/20, following a campaign disrupted by Covid, the Red Devils finished third following a last-day victory over Leicester City, with Fernandes scoring 20 goals and assisting in his first 20 games for the club in all competitions.

From the beginning, the Portuguese genius has been a difference maker, and continues to be so, although now may be the time to try to ease that creative burden on him.

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There has been strong reliance on Fernandes for a creative mindset at Old Trafford for so long, with the 31-year-old arguably peaking following a record-breaking 21st assist of the season at the weekend.

All the focus of the captain’s heroics masked the struggles of those close to him this time, with no player coming close to helping the elite.

Really, guess how many second-ranked players are ranked? Just four, courtesy of Patrick Dorgu. The gap in that door between Fernandes and the others is shaky.

That could all change with the new signing, however, with Italian outlet Tuttosport – via United outlets – suggesting that talks have been held over a deal for Fernandes’ man, Afonso Moreira.

According to the report, INEOS have made inquiries about the 21-year-old’s deal, despite facing competition from clubs in Germany and Italy.

His current club Lyon, amid ongoing financial problems, can only receive €25m (£21m), having previously sold Rayan Cherki to Manchester City in a similar deal last summer.

Why Moreira could be another Fernandes at Man Utd

Unsurprisingly, a number of Fernandes’ assists will follow a host of summer signings last year, with Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko all hitting double figures in league goals.

More creativity is needed from Cunha and Mbeumo, however, with the pair registering five assists between them, while Amad’s final-day contribution was only his third and first of 2026.

This is where Moreira makes the difference, however, with the youngster enjoying his campaign in France, following his arrival from Portugal last summer.

Trained at Fernandes’ former club, Sporting CP, the promising player can operate all over the pitch, but is often deployed on the left side, allowing his creative abilities to flourish in that role.

In total, he finished 2025/26 with four goals and seven assists in Ligue 1, while creating ten ‘big chances’ and making 1.2 key passes per game.

Fernandes, in context, led the way with 33 ‘big chances’ of his own, although again, the gap between him and the others was significant for United, with Amad sitting second with only seven.

Moreira may not be at his compatriot’s level yet, but he could be closer to Fernandes creatively than anyone at Old Trafford.

Previously hailed as “one of the most talented players of his generation” by scout Jacek Kulig, Moreira again impressed in the 2025/26 European Championship, scoring and assisting four goals in just seven Europa League appearances, despite making just three starts.

That’s pretty good considering he had a brief taste of senior football before this season, spending most of his time with the Sporting ‘B’ team.

Even so, he looks like another Portuguese star in the making, in the same way as Fernandes, with the possibility that United and INEOS could strike a deal this summer.

Indeed, the player who was handed his debut by Ruben Amorim in Lisbon could now become the latest Sporting-linked player to shine in Manchester.

It worked well for many of them…