Sridhar Bhamidi
AS Monaco midfielder Fabinho has aired his frustration at being blocked of a move away to Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain. The Brazilian versatile midfielder was eager to move out of the club in the summer but Monaco prevented any movement.
As top players left Monaco to join other clubs, Fabinho had to begrudgingly stay put. And, the Brazilian has revealed how difficult it was for him after he was denied a move to United.
The midfielder was speaking to French newspaper Nice Matin and revealed that the failed move affected his form at the start of the season.
“During the window it was difficult because I was not sure if I would be staying,” Fabinho said.
“I was closer to leaving than staying. Playing in that context was not good. My head was elsewhere. Unconsciously, I was not giving my maximum. I was not trying to give a bad image, I could never do that.”
Almost all of Fabinho’s top teammates left the club in the summer for high-profile moves. Kylian Mbappe left to join PSG while Bernardo Silva and Benjamin Mendy joined Manchester City. Even Tiemoue Bakayoko joined Chelsea and Fabinho thought he would be the next to leave.
However, the Brazilian midfielder was prevented from departing Stade Louis II, although United and PSG went ahead with their strong interest.
Manager Jose Mourinho was attracted by Fabinho’s versatility, with the player capable of slotting in easily as a right-back and as a holding midfielder. The Portuguese felt that he would be a great addition to his squad but was put off by Monaco’s resistance before moving to sign other targets.
It was an open secret that Manchester United were interested in signing the player and tried their best to lure him to Old Trafford. Even the Ligue 1 club’s vice-president Vadim Vasilyev confirmed last month that there was a ‘strong’ interest from United.
Vasilyev even went ahead to admit that it could be in the interests of Monaco to let Fabinho complete a mega-money move to United in the near future.
Talking to the Sky Sports, Vasilyev indicated that Fabinho is very important for the club’s project right now but they may not be averse to letting him leave the club and join United.
“But we realise in Monaco we have a certain model, that at a certain moment when we feel it’s right we have to let players go in order to be successful again.
“This is not only about money; this is more about being successful.”
The €25m rated Fabinho has made 14 appearances for Monaco this season in all competitions and is contracted until June 2019. Will he make a move in January? It will be a huge surprise if he does move in January but next summer could prove to be an interesting tussle if Monaco remain open to offers.
