Bruno Fernandes has been told that he will remain ‘integral’ to Ruben Amorim’s plans at Manchester United despite a position change.
Manchester United severely underwhelmed last season but Bruno Fernandes attempted all he could to drag the team forwards.
With 19 goals and 20 assists across the entire campaign, it was one of Fernandes’ most influential seasons at Old Trafford in terms of goal contributions.
After convincing him to remain at the club, United have now brought in quality support for Fernandes through the signings of Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo.
But those two players coming into the team does make it seem like Fernandes will be playing more permanently in the midfield pivot under Ruben Amorim, rather than in the frontline.
Fernandes told he will be ‘integral’ to United next season
Some fans have always been skeptical of Fernandes playing in that deeper role due to his highly attacking nature but the captain showed during periods of last season that he is able to switch his game up.
Ballon d’Or winner and former United striker Michael Owen has claimed that Fernandes’ numbers will naturally take a hit if he plays in the deeper role consistently next term, but he still believes the Portuguese midfielder will be ‘integral’ to the team, no matter where he plays.
In fact, the former striker also claimed that Fernandes’ overall game could reach another level with better players around him after the signings of Mbeumo and Cunha.
Speaking exclusively to UtdDistrict, via AskGamblers, about Fernandes’ position change, Owen said: “It definitely would [impact his numbers]. It’s not rocket science; if you play deeper, you’re probably not going to be involved in as many attacks, and you’re probably not going to score as many goals.
“But I’ve been so impressed by Fernandes. I know he frustrates a lot of people, but that Manchester United team has been pretty poor over the years. It’s sunk so many great players, so many players have come in at the top of their game and then just get sucked into what Manchester United has been for the last dozen years or so. It’s been a bit of a graveyard for players.
“Whereas he’s kept his levels so high, and that’s not an easy thing to do when everyone else around you is dropping theirs. So, with a lot more good players around him, I think he could excel even more.
“Whether that means he has to drop a bit deeper because other players have been bought in that position, that remains to be seen. But one thing that is a certainty is that he will start, he will be integral to Manchester United, and he’s done incredibly well to keep his level so high over the last couple of years.”
Fernandes has shown he can evolve
Fernandes has shown the ability to evolve his game over the last 12 months and, as Owen suggested, that will only further improve with the quality signings being made at Old Trafford.
There are still some fair questions about who is the best midfield partner for the club captain, but the arguments that he can not play in that position are long in the past.
Last term, his best performances came in that role although he would sometimes get frustrated by the poor frontline ahead of him. It felt like United needed a clone of the captain to play in both positions.
Hopefully, that will not be as much of an issue heading into next season as there is much-improved quality in United’s attacking unit.
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