Bruno Fernandes again demonstrated his importance to Manchester United with their goal in Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Arsenal.
It came after a recent debate over his captaincy and here, the PA news agency assesses his United record.
War of words
Former United captain Roy Keane recently questioned Fernandes’ leadership credentials on The Overlap podcast.
After Fernandes scored in February’s comeback draw with Everton and set up Harry Maguire’s winner in the 3-2 victory over Ipswich, Keane said: “Talent’s not enough. Bruno’s not a fighter. You want someone who is going ‘lads, are you with me?’”
United boss Ruben Amorim insisted his opinion is “more important” than Keane’s and that Fernandes “always wants the responsibility”.
He added after the Arsenal game: “We need more Brunos. That is clear. Not just the quality, the character and the availability is so important and he is so decisive with and without the ball.”
Leading the way
Fernandes is United’s top Premier League goalscorer with seven this season, having also topped the club charts in 2020-21 with 18 goals and last season with 10.
The midfielder has at least eight in every previous season he has been at Old Trafford and has ranked either first or second for the club in all but his debut season as a January 2020 signing.
He still led United in league assists that season and has done so in all but 2021-22, when he ranked second with six behind Paul Pogba’s nine – four of which came in the season-opening 5-1 win over Leeds, when Fernandes was otherwise occupied scoring a hat-trick.
He has 61 goals and 48 assists in 186 Premier League games, winning the league’s player of the month award four times – all in 2020 – and goal of the month on three occasions.
In all competitions, Fernandes has played 275 games for United with 91 goals and 80 assists. He won the Sir Matt Busby player of the year award, voted for by the club’s members, in 2019-20, 2020-21 and last season.
Keane’s fellow Overlap panellist Ian Wright claimed “if Bruno’s not there, United are in the relegation places” and simply stripping his goals out this season would see them five points worse off and down in 16th, albeit still 12 points above the bottom three.
Over Fernandes’ five-and-a-half Premier League seasons, United have won 36, drawn 12 and lost five of the games in which he has scored. Removing his goals would leave them instead with 20 wins, 16 draws and 17 defeats, costing them 44 points in total.
He has scored nine winning goals – most dramatically a penalty 10 minutes into stoppage time in September 2020’s 3-2 win over Brighton – and the final goal in four separate draws, including against Bournemouth last season when he equalised twice.
Fernandes scored United’s first two goals and set up the third as they came from behind to beat Everton 3-1 in November 2020, while his brace in last season’s 4-2 win over Sheffield United took his side from 2-1 down to 3-2 up.
