Sporting Lisbon chiefs have reportedly paid a visit to Manchester United's offices to thrash out a deal for Bruno Fernandes, according to Portuguese outlet Record .
Portugal international Fernandes has long been linked with a move to Old Trafford, and the reports in his homeland claim that Sporting president Frederico Varandas and sporting director Hugo Viana have been discussing the deal with United chiefs.
The 25-year-old - who was also closely linked with Tottenham in the summer - would reportedly be available for around £60million, and Record claim that there is an increasing confidence that a deal could be reached during the January transfer window.
For his part, United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer moved to dampen transfer speculation at a press conference on Friday, when he was asked if he'd been on a scouting mission to watch Fernandes.
"We go back to speculations and we do go and watch games all the time,"he said.
"When I've been and where I've been is irrelevant. [Fernandes] is another player in a different club I can't speak about.
"We've still got the same thoughts we had a month ago. We've got the players we have, we're working with the ones we have and if something happens we'll tell you.
"I can't say yes or no [if players will leave during January], but I wouldn't expect many ins and outs, no."
United have been linked with moves for Aston Villa captain Jack Grealish and Leicester City playmaker James Maddison recently, with midfield seen as a key area in their recruitment efforts.
Both Scott McTominay and Paul Pogba remain on the treatment table, while the lack of creativity in Solskjaer's side has been clear to see this season.
