Dion Dublin singled out one man who was key in Manchester United turning the game around in the second half after conceding early on in the match.
Manchester United collected another three Premier League points on Sunday, fighting back to secure a 2–1 victory over Crystal Palace thanks to goals from Bruno Fernandes and Benjamin Šeško.
Palace made a brighter start and went ahead early on when Maxence Lacroix rose highest to head home from a corner. United’s afternoon became more complicated when Luke Shaw was forced off through injury, prompting Noussair Mazraoui to slot in at left-back.
Although the hosts improved before the interval, they were unable to find an equaliser. After the restart, however, they returned with far greater intensity. Lacroix brought down Matheus Cunha in the box and was shown a red card, and Fernandes calmly converted the resulting penalty to level the score.
Buoyed by the momentum and their numerical advantage, United completed the turnaround when Fernandes picked out Šeško well with a cross, who finished confidently to cap another fine display in 2026 and lift the Reds into third place.
Fernandes stars once again
Manchester United failed to threaten the Crystal Palace goal with any real threat in the first half, with United squandering a couple of decent chances to level the game before the half-time break.
After scoring his penalty, Fernandes was on hand once again to pick out Šeško brilliantly with a cross that was expertly headed past Dean Henderson to make the most of their man advantage.
Speaking after the Slovenian striker’s goal, former United striker Dion Dublin praised Fernandes for his role in United’s comeback and as club captain, spotting that the Portuguese star was demanding the ball to his feet just moments before Šeško’s finish.
Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live, he said, “That is down to the captain, Bruno Fernandes, again. He is demanding the ball, and Šeško starts behind his defender. He gets across his defender and heads it with power and precision.
“Bruno Fernandes is a presence, and he makes sure everything is right with the players – if something needs to be done, he will get it done. That is on and off the pitch. Man United are very lucky to have someone like him.”
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Fernandes could be set for a special season
When people look back on Bruno Fernandes’ time at the club, they will see a player who deserved to win so much more with the club than he has done, with his trophy cabinet consisting of just one Carabao Cup and one FA Cup to date.
With United out of all cup competitions this season, he will have to wait until next season to have a chance of adding to that collection. Despite the team’s struggles this season, the 31-year-old could be on for a very special season individually.
His assist today moves him up to 13 for the season, almost double Rayan Cherki in second with seven.
Thierry Henry’s tally of 20 assists in the 2002/03 season is the most in a Premier League season, and with ten games still to go in this campaign, United’s captain still has an outside chance of beating that record, especially considering Šeško’s goal-scoring form as of late.
If he were to break the record, then he would put himself in a great position to be named PFA Player of the Year, with current odds naming him as the third most likely player to win the award behind Declan Rice and Erling Haaland.
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