But once Tottenham signalled their interest in Fernandes, West Ham — now steered by co-chair Daniel Kretinsky — held firm on a valuation above £80m.
United were prepared to reach £85m with add-ons, but felt that doing so would simply prompt Spurs to move to £90m — exactly the bidding war they want to avoid.
United have agreed a £35m agreement with Serie A side Atalanta for Ederson, but his late call-up to Brazil means his medical will not take place until Carlo Ancelotti’s team are out of the tournament. As with all of United’s World Cup players, he will then get a minimum of three weeks off.
As it stands, when Michael Carrick’s senior group return for testing and pre-season on 9 July, the only midfielder available may be Mason Mount, who is viewed primarily as an attacking player.
United’s first friendly is on 18 July — the day before the World Cup final — against Wrexham in Helsinki.
Of the eight first-team midfielders listed on United’s website, beyond Mount, Carrick’s options will be Toby Collyer — who has interest from Hull — Dan Gore, who spent last season on loan at Rotherham, who went down from League One, and twins Jack and Tyler Fletcher. The rest remain on World Cup duty. Tyler Fletcher earned a surprise Scotland call-up after impressing in the build-up but did not feature.
Premier League 2 captain Jacob Devaney impressed in central midfield for Scottish Premiership side St Mirren in the latter half of last season. Jack Moorhouse, who made 14 appearances on loan for Leyton Orient in the first half of the campaign, plus Jayce Fitzgerald, Sekou Kone and Jim Thwaites are other central midfielders in United’s academy.
With a match against Norwegian club Rosenborg on 24 July, United’s younger players have another chance to catch Carrick’s eye.
However, by the time the high-profile pre-season fixtures begin — starting with Atletico Madrid in Stockholm on 1 August — Carrick will expect the midfield situation to be resolved.