On January 29, 2020, Manchester United confirmed they had
reached an agreement with Sporting Lisbon for the transfer of Portuguese player
Bruno Fernandes for a fee reportedly worth up to €80 million (£67.6 million),
subject to the player passing a medical and agreeing personal terms.
The deal was completed the following day.
Fernandes signed a five-and-a-half-year contract.
The scouts of Manchester United had been tracking this
Portuguese talent for a while now.
He had a good out with Udinese in Italian Serie A, which
paved the way for a move to Sampdoria in 2016. The following year, Fernandes
joined Sporting CP, and thee experiences at Udinese and Sampdoria developed him
into a much better product.
Fernandes' first appearance in the UEFA Champions League
group stage was on 12 September 2017, where he put the visitors 3–0 ahead in
the 43rd minute of an eventual 3–2 win at Olympiacos FC. He finished his first
season with 16 goals across all competitions, second only to Bas Dost.
On May 15, 2018, Fernandes and several of his teammates,
including coaches, were injured following an attack by around 50 Sporting
supporters at the club's training ground after the team finished third in the
league and missed out on Champions League qualification.
Despite the events, the team agreed to play in the final of
the Taça de Portugal scheduled for the following weekend, eventually losing to
C.D. Aves.
Fernandes was named the Primeira Liga Player of the Year on
6 July 2018.
Four days later he signed a new five-year contract with a
€100 million release clause, having turned back on his original decision to
leave the Estádio José Alvalade following the departure of club president Bruno
de Carvalho, and being given an improved salary in the process.
Fernandes scored his 23rd competitive goal of the 2018–19
campaign during a 3–1 home win against Portimonense S.C. on 3 March 2019,
through a late penalty, surpassing António Oliveira's club record for goals by
a midfielder in a season, set in 1981–82.
On May 2, 2019, he scored a hat-trick in an 8–1 away
rout of Belenenses SAD, in the process becoming the highest-scoring Portuguese
midfielder in a single season of all time, with 31 goals to his name. He scored
his 33rd and final goal of the season on May 25, 2019, during Sporting's
victory against FC Porto in the Taça de Portugal final.
He was named Primeira Liga Player of the Year for the second
successive year for his performances in the 2018–19 season.
He scored seven goals in his first 10 appearances of the
2019–20 season, including a run of scoring in six consecutive appearances.
Now it was time to move to somewhere else, and no place could
better than Old Trafford for a Sporting CP player.
Who could forget Cristiano Ronaldo’s arrival at Old Trafford
in the early 2000s and his rise to the top under Sir Alex Ferguson?
It had been a legendary tale and Sporting CP seems not to
disappoint Old Trafford still today.
Fernandes made his debut on February 1, 2020, playing the
full 90 minutes of a goalless draw at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers.
In Manchester United's 2–0 away win over Chelsea on February
17, 2020, he provided an assist for the second goal, a header from Harry
Maguire.
Fernandes came on as a late substitute for Manchester United
against Club Brugge in a 1–1 draw on his European debut for the club.
He scored his first goal for Manchester United against
Watford on 23 February, converting from the penalty spot in an eventual 3–0
victory at Old Trafford, a match in which he also provided an assist for the
third goal scored by Mason Greenwood.
His first European goal for the club came in the second leg
of their UEFA Europa League round of 32 tie against Club Brugge at Old
Trafford, in which he scored a penalty, helping them to a 5–0 victory.
At the end of the month, Fernandes was voted as Manchester
United's player of the month. On March 16, 2020, Fernandes was voted as the
Premier League Player of the Month for February.
On June 30, 2020, Fernandes scored his first brace for the
club in 3–0 win over Brighton and Hove Albion, and on Saturday, he was on the
score-sheet yet again, in the 5-2 thrashing against Bournemouth.
Bruno Fernandes has been named Manchester United's player of
the month for the third time in a row and he deserves it fully.
Since he arrived in Old Trafford, experts and fans have been
impressed with him and back in Europe, the media does not talk about a player
until and unless a player has the talent and class other than on the basis of
personal relationships like Bangladesh Sports Journalism fraternity.
One needs to earn it out there and Fernandes has earned it
and why not? He has mobilized the stagnant midfield of Manchester United.
His presence in the team helped Anthony Martial score
United's first Premier League hat-trick since 2013 during the 3-0 win over
Sheffield United last week.
Manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was quick to highlight the
connection between Fernandes and Martial ahead of the restart last month.
His presence has made the Manchester United frontline
versatile. Fernandes rolls the ball into the spaces and breaks the passing
lanes, while the players upfront coordinates accordingly. The link-up, which
was missing for a long time, Fernandes has injected that.
Former England and Manchester United legend described the
impact of Fernandes in a better way:
“It's the risks he takes on a football pitch and he's
someone you don't mind doing that because his intentions are there.”
“When the ball comes to him, a lot of midfielders nine times
out of 10 play it back or out wide, but he identifies there's a danger area,
space for him to live and breathe and for players to attack once he gets on the
ball. And these players are starting to get on the same wavelength as him when
he gets the ball”.
“All great players before the ball comes to them are having
a look, assessing the areas around him”.
“He wants to exploit the areas, playing in with one pass.
The intention is there to hurt the opposition”.
Hardly anyone could put a finger on the explanation of Rio
Ferdinand.
The impact of Fernandes has been huge.
Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 05/07/2020 Bruno Fernandes is versatile
Thank You
Faisal Caesar
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