Manchester United star Fred was told by the Brazil coaching staff to go against the instructions he was given at Old Trafford last season, according to South American football expert Tim Vickery .
The central midfielder has been on the Red Devils’ books since completing a £47million switch from Shakhtar Donetsk four years ago.
There is uncertainty over Fred’s long-term future as his £120,000-per-week Manchester United contract is due to expire next summer, although there is an option for the agreement to be extended by a further 12 months.
He has failed to nail down a regular spot in the heart of the Red Devils’ midfield since Erik ten Hag took over as the club’s new boss following the conclusion of last season.
Fred has only been afforded four Premier League starts since the campaign got underway and enjoyed just 575 minutes of action in all competitions.
The 29-year-old was also restricted to a substitute appearance last weekend, when Manchester United moved into the Premier League’s top five .
Fred replaced Christian Eriksen with just 11 minutes remaining as the Red Devils overcame West Ham United at Old Trafford, while he was an unused substitute during the defeat to Aston Villa on Sunday.
Read more: Premier League 22/23 Game week 15: Fixtures, predictions, odds, table & everything you need to know Vickery understands that Fred was told to go against tactical advice given to him by former Manchester United chief Ole Gunnar Solskjaer when he linked up with his national side.
The journalist believes the former Internacional star was told by Tite, who is in charge of Brazil, to get forward more often.
Vickery told GIVEMESPORT: “The Brazil coaching staff told me that Fred was saying, maybe under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, that the instruction was to hang back because he had to cover and free Scott McTominay. “That doesn’t make a great deal of sense to me and the Brazilian coaching staff said to him ‘don’t.
Run, burst and go forward because you will show the coach that you are more useful to the side if you do that’. “I think that was hard for him because he’s an unselfish player and he does what you tell him.” Having taken his tally up to 28 caps in recent months, it is likely that Fred will be included in Brazil’s squad for the World Cup .
The competition is set to get underway in just a matter of weeks and Fred, who won an abundance of silverware during his time on Shakhtar’s books, will be looking to help the South American giants to glory in Qatar.
Brazil will go head-to-head with Serbia, Switzerland and Cameroon in the group stage .
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