The only club willing to pay Enzo Fernandez’s €120m release fee

Carlo Garganese

• 26 Dec 2022 12:30 GMT
• 3 min read

Manchester United are the only club willing to pay Enzo Fernandez's €120 million release fee.

That is according to Portuguese transfer expert Bruno Andrade, who reports that Man Utd are ahead in the race for the Benfica midfielder.

Fernandez was one of the best midfielders at the 2022 World Cup, playing a key role as Argentina won the trophy.

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The 21-year-old broke into the Argentina starting XI during the group stages after scoring a brilliant goal against Mexico.

He went on to be named Young Player of the Tournament, winning plaudits the world over.

His performances have led to interest from a host of top clubs around Europe.

Premier League giants Liverpool and Newcastle are interested, while Real Madrid have been considered the favourites for the Argentine until now.

Madrid are in the process of renewing their legendary midfield, having sold Casemiro to Man Utd this past summer and with Toni Kroos and Luka Modric both seeing their deals expire at the end of the season.

But Andrade reports that only Man Utd are winning to pay Enzo’s astronomical €120m release clause.

Benfica are demanding that his whole clause is paid in full in order to sell a player they only signed this past summer from River Plate.

The central midfielder joined Benfica for €18m and has already proved to be a bargain.

He has scored three goals and provided four assists for a Benfica team who are top of the Portuguese league with 12 wins and a draw from 13 games. They also topped their Champions League group above PSG, winning home and away versus Juventus.

Fernandez’s performances also saw him hailed by national teammate Lionel Messi.

What did Messi say?

"I’m not surprised by Enzo. I know him and I see him train every day," Messi said. "He deserves it because he’s a spectacular player."

Fernandez is only 21 and has tipped to become one of the best midfielders in the game.