Shakhtar Donetsk chief executive Sergei Palkin has revealed that Manchester United were working on signing Fred since April under the orders of Jose Mourinho.
The Red Devils announced that they had reached an agreement to sign the Brazil international last week, beating rivals Manchester City to his signature.
Pep Guardiola had tried to sign Fred in January, though injuries forced a rethink, and United stepped in after extensively scouting the Brazilian.
Palkin told Shakhtar’s official website: ‘We conducted the negotiations with the representatives of Man Utd for over two months.
‘Since April, their scout had been constantly present at all our home games in Kharkiv. Jose Mourinho wanted to see Fred at Manchester United.
‘The negotiations were interesting, and, as I said earlier, we are fully satisfied with the agreement terms.
‘Fred has been at Shakhtar since 2013, he has grown seriously as a football player, deserving to continue his performance in a stronger league.
‘I’m sure he will progress and improve his level. I wish him every success in the Premier League.
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‘It’s nice that our former players – Willian, Fernandinho, Mkhitaryan, and Fred – have been playing in England for the top clubs competing for the top spot.’
