Manchester United after Brazilian Fabinho

On February 8, 2018, reports indicated that Manchester United was continuing its pursuit of Monaco’s 24-year-old Brazilian international Fabinho ahead of the summer transfer window. The player had been strongly linked with a move to United during the previous summer, but Monaco blocked the transfer after allowing several other key squad members to depart. Consequently, Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho signed Nemanja Matic from Chelsea to bolster his midfield.

Mourinho reportedly remained determined to strengthen his squad, highly valuing Fabinho’s versatility and his ability to play in two different positions. Fabinho had previously revealed that he came close to joining Monaco’s domestic rivals, Paris Saint-Germain, before interest from Premier League clubs developed.

Manchester United had recently signed Alexis Sanchez from Arsenal in January 2018 to aid their push to finish as close to league leaders Manchester City as possible. The club had not won a league title since 2013, and Mourinho was forced to complete the remainder of the 2017-18 season with his existing squad before reigniting his transfer plans.

The pursuit came amid a challenging season for Monaco. The French club had fallen 12 points behind Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint-Germain and finished at the bottom of their Champions League group without securing a single win in the competition.