Bruno Fernandes shines for Manchester United’s win
Bruno Fernandes put on a brilliant display to prove he deserves the captain’s armband at Man Utd.
Fernandes led the team onto the field with confidence against Betis, despite criticism from the media over the weekend. Erik Ten Hag expressed his trust in the Portuguese midfielder in a press conference before the match, but it was his performance on the pitch that caught the attention of fans.
Fernandes demonstrated his ability right from the start, playing in his familiar No. 10 position. In the 6th minute, he made a breakthrough down the right flank and delivered a cross that Marcus Rashford converted to open the scoring.
Fernandes not only contributed to the attack but also impressed the crowd with his defensive efforts. He constantly moved, fought for the ball, and was ready for transitions from defense to attack. In the first half alone, the Old Trafford stands echoed with chants of “Bruno, Bruno, Bruno.”
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This was a huge morale boost for the Portuguese midfielder, who also showed more maturity on the pitch. He no longer complained or muttered, but instead acted like a true leader. He spoke only when necessary, using hand signals to communicate continuously. Fernandes has likely learned a lot from the team’s devastating defeat to Liverpool.
The goal in the 58th minute was a reward for the efforts of MU’s number 8. It was a well-planned corner kick by the “Red Devils”. Lisandro Martinez blocked the opponent’s path, Varane provided cover while Bruno Fernandes escaped and delivered a powerful header to put MU ahead 3-1.
Things might have been perfect for Bruno Fernandes if not for the incident in the 68th minute. The Portuguese midfielder had a collision with Real Betis goalkeeper Bravo after a challenge for the ball. The referee immediately showed a yellow card to MU’s number 8, despite his attempts to explain.
Many people, especially Real Betis fans, believed that Bruno Fernandes deserved a red card for this incident because his foot was high off the ground when making the challenge.
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According to former English footballer Robbie Savage, the referee and VAR team agreed to give Bruno Fernandes the benefit of the doubt in this situation because his foot was wide and his cleats were not pointing forward.
Therefore, the referees believed that this was an unintentional challenge by MU’s number 8 but still issued a yellow card because the action could have been dangerous to the opponent. Nonetheless, Savage still considered this incident lucky for the midfielder.
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