The curious case of Fred: how the Brazilian became Manchester United’s second expensive example of failed one-upmanship

Fred Manchester United

He will take the field at Old Trafford on Saturday. He always does. He is a fixture, a larger-than-life figure who invariably cheers up some of the Manchester United faithful.  

Enough about Fred the Red, though. His namesake, on the other hand, may not be seen – and not just because his 5ft 7in frame means he’s a Lilliputian figure in Jose Mourinho’s supersized midfield mix.

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Richard Jolly

Richard Jolly also writes for the National, the Guardian, the Observer, the Straits Times, the Independent, Sporting Life, Football 365 and the Blizzard. He has written for the FourFourTwo website since 2018 and for the magazine in the 1990s and the 2020s, but not in between. He has covered 1500+ games and remembers a disturbing number of the 0-0 draws.