Erik ten Hag confirms Man Utd are interested in re-signing star who was sold five months ago | Football

Erik ten Hag has confirmed that the club is interested in signing Alvaro Fernandez following his permanent move to Benfica in the summer.

Fernandez joined from Real Madrid as a 16-year-old and progressed through the academy with spells on loan at Preston in the Championship and back in Spain with Granada.

However, the left-back failed to make his first-team debut at Old Trafford, instead being loaned out to Benfica last January. The Portuguese giants exercised an option to sign him permanently for just £5 million in May, with Fernandez establishing himself as a key first-team player this season.

Fernandez’s electrifying performances have been particularly frustrating for United fans to watch given the shortage of left-backs, with Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia still injured.

Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Ten Hag revealed that the club are still keeping a close eye on the 21-year-old with a buy-back clause on the table if he continues to impress.

‘I think the process is perfect. We loaned him to Preston, he came back, then we loaned him to Granada, he didn’t play that much there, and of course we watched him all the time and now we had the chance to sell him,” ten Hag said about Fernandez.

‘But we have a buy-back clause so we have control over the situation, I think that’s what he needed.

‘From Preston, then go to La Liga, go to Portugal (with Benfica) and move to a higher club and a better league each time. Now we have to look at the situation and assess whether he can be an option for us.

‘But playing for Man United is not that easy, playing in the Premier League for Manchester United is not that easy. You need experience, but also development.

‘You get development by playing for better clubs and in better competitions.’

Fernandez has started all but one of Benfica’s seven league games this season, playing the full 90 in the last five.

He also shone in the Champions League, putting in a great performance in the 4-0 win over Atletico Madrid. Diego Simeone’s side, along with La Liga giants Barcelona and Real Madrid, are also keeping a close eye on Fernandez’s progress.

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