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What's the rumour?
Manchester United look on course to win the Manchester derby, in the transfer window. According to reports in the Metro, Manchester City have pulled out of the race to sign Shakhtar Donetsk midfielder, Fred.
The 25-year-old has a contract until the year 2023 in Ukraine and has been valued for a price tag of £40-45 million by his club.
In case you didn't know...
Fred joined Shakhtar in 2013 following the sale of Fernandinho to Manchester City. He made 30 appearances in all competitions chipping in with two goals and four assists. With his presence in the side, the Ukranian club averaged 2.39 points per game in the league as they went on to clinch the title.
The heart of the matter
The Brazilian has had a successful four-and-a-half year stint in Donetsk thus far and is continuing to have yet another impressive campaign which has attracted the interest of major European clubs. He is basically a deep-lying central midfielder and is an excellent tackler and passer of the ball.
The 25-year-old averaged nearly three tackles and one interception per game in his side's run to the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League. Although he does not score many goals, he is always a threat going forward with his brilliant dribbling skills and the ability to take on defenders.
He also possesses the added threat on the counter-attack, as the team breaks ahead with his pace. He had an impressive outing in Europe despite his team coming up short, as he proved to be the catalyst for Shakhtar completing with a pass success rate of 86%, 5.4 long balls per game along with his one goal and assist in eight appearances.
Rumour probability/rating: 8/10
Manchester City witnessed Fred firsthand when the teams met in the group stages of the Champions League. They certainly seemed to have an impressed which put them in pole position to pursue his signature in the summer since the fee was also agreed upon, according to a report from Manchester Evening News in early February.
He was eyed as a long-term replacement for veteran midfielder Fernandinho but the fact that City have withdrawn their interest in the Brazilian has come as a major surprise. This has put their rivals, Manchester United ahead in the race as they also eye reinforcements in midfield.
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Author's take
It is hard to understand why Manchester City have pulled out from signing Fred. He looks to be the ideal replacement for Fernandinho, possessing similar attributes as his countryman and also prefers to shoot from distance.
In spite of Guardiola's interest or not, the Brazilian is destined to leave the Ukranian champions in the summer. This could potentially make a move to Jose Mourinho's team imminent, as the Red Devils have also set their sight on him and would fit perfectly in the midfield alongside Nemanja Matic.
