Alvaro Fernandez, a full-back for Manchester United, has signed a loan deal with Portuguese powerhouse Benfica that runs through the end of the current campaign.

The 20-year-old played the first part of the season with La Liga team Granada CF, making 13 appearances across all competitions, following a successful summer with United’s senior side.

He will now spend 2023–2024 with the Primeira Liga winners, who are vying for a record-tying 39th top flight title, after being called up earlier this month.

Alvaro and Garnacho

Angel Di Maria, a former United winger, is a familiar figure at Benfica, who are presently one point behind city rivals Sporting Club at the top of the Portuguese table.

Alvaro will be loaned to Benfica

In addition, they will be playing in the Europa League after being knocked out of their Champions League group in December.

They will meet Toulouse, a French team, in the competition’s two-leg play-off round.

Alvaro joined the Reds in 2020 from Real Madrid, and following two seasons of playing regularly for our young teams, he was named the 2022–2023 Denzil Haroun Reserve-Team Player of the Year.

He left the team for the third time, this time on loan to Preston North End after a productive season. Fernandez made 42 appearances for Deepdale during the 2022–2023 season, which saw them place 12th in the Championship.

Alvaro started four of United’s preseason games, including the friendly against Wrexham in San Diego, where he set up Marc Jurado’s goal, despite the fact that he hasn’t yet played a competitive first-team match for us.

Fernandez will have another excellent chance to gain senior experience with this, and we wish him well at the Estadio da Luz.