Player appears to be heading to Italy instead next year.
Check in to Manchester United vs West Ham United
Premier League duo Liverpool and Manchester United both look like missing out on signing in-demand FC Porto midfield player Fernando as the Brazilian weighs up a possible move to Serie A when the winter transfer window opens again for business in the new year, according to reports in the Daily Express.
Read more Liverpool FC news
Read more Manchester United FC news
It is understood that the two top-flight giants have been keeping close tabs on the holding midfielder for some time now with a view to luring Fernando to the Premier League either next month, or at the end of this season.
In particular, it was thought that the Premier League champions were the more interested of the two teams in the 26-year-old, whose current contract at the Dragao now only runs until June 30 2014, as new Red Devils head coach David Moyes goes in search of a new defensive midfielder.
And with the player set to be available on a free transfer next summer, it is also believed that the Portuguese champions would rather offload Fernando in January, rather than risk losing him for nothing at the climax to this campaign.
However, it now appears as though the ex-Brazil Under-20 international has his heart set on a move to Serie A instead, with Fernando’s agent Antonio Araujo recently claiming that: “I read in the papers that Inter, Juventus, Napoli and Fiorentina are interested.
“Fernando would be very happy to play in Italy. I can not talk much about it.
“The market reopened within weeks, we’ll see later.
“It’s a situation to analyse. You can leave Portugal in January or at the end of the season. One is the will of Fernando in playing in the Italian Serie.”
Find out the top ten Ashes moments from England and Australia’s cricket rivalry here in this great piece from fanatix!
Find out the top 10 biggest match-fixing scandals in sport history.