Bruno Fernandes and his importance are being underrated

This season, Man United's captain received a lot of criticism when people thought he never played his role for the team, especially in difficult times.

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One of the biggest critics is former captain Roy Keane, now a television commentator. The Guardian recently asked the question: If Bruno was replaced with Roy Keane now, would it make any difference to the team around him?

The image of the captain of the Ferguson era constantly scolding and reacting to the referees - and leading his teammates to follow - is still imprinted in people's minds, nearly two decades after the former Irish midfielder left Man. United. But Keane spent 12 years in a team that dominated English football, eight of which he was captain. Sometimes it is impossible to compare Bruno with Keane, at least because the aura around Keane is so great. Whatever the winner says is right. During Keane's time, Man United did everything right.

Roy Keane constantly criticized Bruno Fernandes

So what would happen if Keane was pushed to Erik ten Hag's Man United team? An interesting question. His ability remains clear, but that ferocious drive to win will likely be analyzed as pathetic and petulant, as was the case with Fernandes. Keane has a violent element, Fernandes does not. However, the Portuguese midfielder's body language received many harsh criticisms. But if Fernandes ran around the field like a little lamb, obedient and obedient, would he be judged differently?

As Ten Hag says: “What you see is a player's personality expressed through their body language and that's not something you can change in the short term. Bruno is a good example of this. I've seen him want to win and so he shows his emotions and it's an absolute strength for him to motivate his team. He shows how much he wants to win so that those around him pick it up and fight for it.”

According to the Guardian, Bruno's desire is no different from Roy Keane's, but the way he expresses it is very different. Keane transmitted that attitude to the referee and opponents, while Bruno only expressed it through his body language. That's why people criticize him for only being "good at acting". Perhaps people want to see a fierce Bruno, ready to destroy the opponent to motivate his teammates to fight rather than torturing himself. But if you do it the way Roy Keane often does these days, it certainly won't be tolerated by the referee.

The important thing was overlooked: how good a footballer Bruno Fernandes is. Pep himself said about Bruno: “It's always like that, he can create something. I'm very impressed – he's an excellent player. Especially the players' consistency in each match, each tournament - I admire that very much."

“He is a guy who, when he has the ball, something happens – from free kicks, set pieces, build-ups with the players up front. So what can I say? He is a really important player," Pep continued to praise.

Bruno Fernandes is still the player with the most contributions to MU this season

Fernandes is rarely injured and his numbers since joining Man United from Sporting in January 2020 show that Man United have made a good deal. His number of appearances in each season for Man United is 22 (matches), 58, 46, 59 respectively - plus 38 played this season. His number of goals in each season: 12, 28, 10, 14 and now 8, and the same number of assists: 17, 14, 15 and 9.

It's too easy to criticize, it's too difficult to change Bruno's behavior, perhaps everything we should look at is his contributions on the field.