Monaco star downplays potential move to Manchester United or City
Fabinho insists he isn’t desperate to leave Monaco
Most of the recent transfer gossip has centered around Bernardo Silva, but he isn’t the only midfielder at the club garnering big time Premier League interest. Defensive midfielder Fabinho could certainly help a number of top English clubs as well. He insists that a summer move to England isn’t a foregone conclusion though.
When asked about a potential move to the Premier League this summer, Fabinho admits that he’s intrigued by the idea, but he’s happy with Monaco at the moment. There’s also the minor detail that he has a contract with the Ligue 1 club that runs through 2021. That contract length could make it challenging for an English club to bring him over this summer.
That’s bad news for the likes of Manchester United, City and Arsenal. All three clubs have been prominently linked with a move for Fabinho over the past few months. It’s not hard to understand why managers like Jose Mourinho, Pep Guardiola and Arsene Wenger are interested in the Brazilian starlet.
Fabinho has been outstanding all year-long for Monaco. The club’s attack gets a lot of attention for their flashy goal scoring, but his play in the midfield has been vital to their success. He currently has Monaco’s second highest Whoscored.com player rating average checking in at 7.44 in 25 league appearances. He’s been even better in Champions League play. He has an eye-catching 7.83 rating in his club’s five matches on the biggest stage of all.
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If you’re looking for a player to compare him to, he reminds me a lot of Chelsea midfielder N’Golo Kante. The French midfielder was hugely instrumental in Leicester City’s surprise title run last season. His ability to win the ball and quickly transition it into attack was a huge factor for the Foxes’ prolific attack.
Fabinho plays largely the same role for Monaco. The Ligue 1 club don’t sit back in the same way that Rainieri’s group did last year, but Fabinho is responsible for winning the ball and moving it ahead quickly. He isn’t quite the defensive equal of Kante, but then again, he does a better job of supporting his side when they attack.
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Fabinho may be happy at Monaco today, but he didn’t say anything about tomorrow. There’s still a significant chance that he ends up in the Premier League next season.