Flamengo 'pull out' of permanent Andreas Pereira transfer
Andreas Pereira’s proposed permanent transfer from Manchester United to Flamengo appears to have fallen through after the Brazilian club reportedly withdrew their interest.
Pereira has been on loan with Flamengo since August, finishing the 2021 Brazilian season with the Rio de Janeiro side and helping them reach the Copa Libertadores final. He stayed over the Brazilian off-season, with his loan deal running until midway through the 2022 season.
Yet the last few months appear to have made all the difference in this saga.
In early February, Flamengo looked set to make the deal permanent after it was claimed in Brazil that a verbal agreement with United had been reached. Directors from the club even travelled to the UK to negotiate the details with Old Trafford officials.
Now, however, IG Esporte has reported that the club is pulling out amid disappointing performances from Pereira and the financial risk and additional legal complications relating to what would have been 75% part-ownership of the player.
He has been benched in recent weeks and hasn’t been a regular starter for Flamengo this year.
Pereira, who has a contract at Old Trafford until the summer of 2023, started his senior career with United after being poached from PSV Eindhoven’s youth ranks at the age of 16 in 2011 – his association with the club has therefore already spanned a full decade.
Belgium-born Pereira was handed a first-team debut at United by Louis van Gaal in 2014, featuring as a half-time substitute in the club’s infamous 4-1 defeat to MK Dons in the EFL Cup. He remained on the fringes of the first team until 2018 after returning from loans at Granada and Valencia.
Pereira eventually made as many as 40 appearances for United during the 2019/20 campaign, but the mid-season arrival of Bruno Fernandes pushed him permanently out of contention.
A loan at Lazio in 2020/21 saw him start just five games in all competitions, with the Serie A club deciding against triggering a €27m option to buy as a result.
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