Bruno Fernandes, the new captain of Manchester United, formerly led Sporting Lisbon, thus it comes as no surprise that Erik ten Hag chose the Portuguese playmaker to take Harry Maguire’s place.
MANCHESTER UNITED
Harry Maguire had been captain for three and a half years, but under Ten Hag, he had slid down the pecking order, and Fernandes was the logical choice to take his position.
Last season, the Portuguese playmaker led Manchester United on 45 occasions, so it’s no surprise that Ten Hag has given him the position permanently.
The 28-year-old is one of the team’s most outspoken players and wants nothing less than the best from his teammates, and Bruno Fernandes has already demonstrated that he has the mindset needed to lead United.
Manchester United must provide Erik ten Hag with the weapon Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp already have
He was also formerly the captain of Sporting Lisbon, having been appointed immediately after joining the club from Sampdoria in 2017. While he was at Sporting, a WhatsApp voice memo displaying his mentality and determination was leaked.
Fernandes criticizes his former colleagues in the voice note for their terrible attitudes and poor performances.
“Bro, I don’t say anything! I honestly, if you want me to tell you, I’d rather not comment on anything,” he is quoted as saying, per Portuguese publication Record.
“I think very badly of some of the attitude of some players. Actually not a certain attitude, it’s an attitude that does not exist. There are players who have no attitude here, bro.
“They don’t want to be here, they don’t want to play. They don’t want to be here then f* off, let them say they don’t want to play. They spend a year here getting money, and then they f* off, bro. S* attitude bro, for f** sake.”
Four Premier League clubs and NFL dominate Forbesβ list of most profitable sports teams
Bruno Fernandes’ angry leaked WhatsApp conversation demonstrates that this was his moment right from the start.
It is not surprising that Erik ten Hag chose Portuguese playmaker Bruno Fernandes to replace Harry Maguire as Manchester United’s new captain as the player previously led Sporting Lisbon.
And Ten Hag has previously praised Fernandes as a “inspiration” to his teammates, praising his dedication to the club when he “did everything to get fit” for a game against Tottenham Hotspur just four days after suffering an ankle injury in United’s FA Cup semi-final triumph over Brighton. “It was tough. A big compliment on Bruno,” Ten Hag added.
“He absolutely doesn’t want to miss this game, he did everything to get fit. He is the example [of] you have to struggle to play on [the] top level and you want to achieve something.
“Once again he showed what a great captain he is, how he has taken responsibility, even when he’s not 100 per cent fit. But he did the job. He was important in this game as well and hopefully others in the team can, not learn [from him], but see him as an inspiration and do the same.”
