Bruno Fernandes — The man who made the Theatre dream again

Bruno Miguel Borges Fernandes. EFL Cup and FA Cup winner. A record four-time Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year award winner. The only player to win the Premier League Player of the Month award four times in the same year.

Fernandes has been an indomitable pillar for the team since his £47m transfer from Sporting in 2020. But none of these accolades even come close to doing justice to Manchester United’s Portuguese magnifico.

Inarguably the club’s best signing in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era, in 288 appearances for the Red Devils, the United No. 8 has scored 98 goals and provided 86 assists. Like many United captains of the past, Fernandes has received his fair share of criticism from the media for his personality.

But, like his legendary predecessors, all the reproval merely seems to add to Fernandes’ case – that he wears his heart on his sleeve for the club and then some. As humble and polite as ever in interviews, Fernandes lets his football do the talking for him. And his resume is no pushover either, having already captained the Red Devils to an FA Cup last season.

Freakishly bold and audaciously good, the United man compels you into humility and forces you to accord him the respect he deserves. And never has it been truer than the 2024/25 season. Bruno Fernandes has somehow found a way to take his game up a notch in a season United will be desperate to disregard.

Glistening in all his glory

An undying beacon of light in a time when the dusk never seems to fade in the red side of Manchester, the Red Devils’ captain has produced an individual record of 19 goals and 19 assists across all competitions.

For a shaky Manchester United outfit, whose season started riddled with defensive frailties and an impotence in front of goal, the 30-year-old was slow to pick up the pace too. Fernandes expelled all his fears as he netted for the first time all season on Halloween day in the FA Cup versus Leicester City under new interim boss, and soon-to-be opposition manager, Ruud Van Nistelrooy. He opened his account in the Premier League days after against Chelsea. But that was just the start.

In the 2024/25 Premier League season, the Manchester United captain has ranked first in chances created, in front of the league’s most creative names in Mohammed Salah and Cole Palmer. While also ranking third in ball recoveries in the league behind only Moises Caicedo and Elliot Anderson.

Apart from being his team’s main attacking outlet, Fernandes is also everywhere on the pitch, consistently ranking among the best for distance covered in the Premier League. Furthermore, he has missed only three games through injury during his time in Manchester.

His staggering physical presence combined with his mesmerising technique has shattered benchmarks of what it is to be a midfielder and cemented his place as one of the best, perhaps the best, midfielders in the league.

This is but a testament to Fernandes’ unwavering commitment to his side and an ode to the abundance of quality that makes him the special player he is.

Beyond the numbers

But the difference lies beyond the numbers. What makes the man from Maia, Portugal, more than just a goals-and-assists machine?

It is Fernandes’ character and relentless ability to show up for his team over and over again. Like manager Ruben Amorim said in an interview following United’s 1-1 draw against Arsenal in early January, where Fernandes scored a sublime freekick, “We need more Brunos that is clear. He steps up all the time.”

At a time in the club where the players’ lack of desire and fire has been one of the biggest complaints of the fans and press, the Manchester United captain has shown us what it means to give everything for this storied badge.

In a recent interview after winning the Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year award for a record fourth time, Fernandes noted, “I hope next year I’m not even in the [running] for the award and do the same season I did this year. That will mean Amad steps up. Garnacho steps up. Rasmus steps up. I will be the happ[iest] person in the world because I’m there to help my teammates to get the best out of them.”

The Portuguese midfielder has always seemed to get it. From the minute he first graced the hallowed turf of Old Trafford, Fernandes looked like he had been here all his life. He played with a passion and hunger reminiscent of legends past, paired with the flamboyance and tease of another certain Portuguese attacker who made the trip from Sporting to Manchester back in 2004. From Maia to Manchester, it was not just a dream fulfilled, but a homecoming for the midfielder who united a club, lost, in their love for him.

Now, at 30 years of age, the peak of his prowess, complete in every sense, but nowhere near finished, Manchester United’s magnifico has kept the spark alive in the Theatre of Dreams with his magical performances in the Europa League.

His first goal in the competition came late on as he smashed home a probing cross from Lisandro Martinez in front of the Stretford End in the 92nd minute to claw all three points from a vigilant Rangers outfit which seemed to have grabbed onto a point with an 88th-minute equaliser. Who else but Manchester United’s main man to reignite the flame in the Old Trafford Red?

If that was the start, things only got better from there. United was down 1-2 on aggregate after conceding an early penalty in the second leg of the round-of-16. Cometh the hour, cometh the man, as the captain stepped up to slot the ball not once, but twice in front of the home crowd to give his side the lead.

With Real Sociedad down to 10 men and United leading by a goal with four minutes left in the tie, a quick United break, Garnacho carrying the ball as Fernandes galloped down the field, a quick pass, and the No. 8 buried the ball in the bottom-left corner to perform his hat-trick. A night of scintillating, free-flowing attacking football had left the Old Trafford faithful nostalgic for times when European nights like these were a staple and hungry for more.

Next up, Lyon. The Red Devils were down 4-2 on the night after conceding two goals in extra time, and 6-4 on aggregate. Fernandes would step up, yet again, in the 114th minute to try and give his side a glimmer of hope. And his spotkick did exactly that as it inched open a door slammed shut on their faces.

That inch was all they needed as two ridiculously late goals from Kobbie Mainoo and Harry Maguire in the 120th and 121st minutes saw United salvage its season and preserve any hopes of European football next season. The Red Devils completed one of the greatest comebacks in their history winning the game 5-4, and the fixture 7-6 on aggregate.

The Theatre had started, albeit cautiously, opening up to the unlikeliest of possibilities. Manchester United might just win the Europa League and pry its way into the UEFA Champions League in a season where it will likely finish 16th or 17th in the Premier League. Catastrophic would be an understatement. And no unbiased viewer would call it an undeserved achievement if it were to happen.

But, before that stood the test of the San Mames in Athletic Bilbao. A 35th-minute red card for Bilbao’s Dani Vivian saw Fernandes coolly pass the ball in from 12 yards to make it 2-0 to United, before a Manuel Ugarte slipped his captain in to tap home an intricately worked team move and finish the tie 3-0. Manchester United would win the second leg 4-1 at home and seal its berth in the final in style with a 7-1 win on aggregate.

Eternity awaits

Now, one game separates Manchester United from a UCL berth and continental glory: a high-stakes winner-takes-all encounter against domestic rival Tottenham Hotspur. An all-English European final. 16th versus 17th in the league. Both sides need to win this tie to rescue their seasons.

But, above all, if there is one player who deserves this trophy more than anyone else, it is Bruno Fernandes. The heartbreak of the 10-11 loss to Villareal in penalties in the 2020/21 Europa League final in his first full season in Manchester. The trials and tribulations that have followed with six different managers. The shifts in ownership and the tempestuous season the club has had.

If there is one force that has withstood the test of this all, it is Bruno Fernandes. Resplendent amidst the harrowing darkness. Effortlessly in his own echelon, above the rest. The anchor that has single-handedly kept Manchester United’s season afloat.

Now, the captain of this fabled club. Leader and role model for millions across the world. This is the final hurdle stopping Bruno Fernandes from etching his name in the annals as one of the greatest ever to do it for the Red Devils. Law, Robson, Schmeichel, Ferdinand, Rooney. Fernandes would become just the sixth Manchester United captain to lift a European trophy.

Victory would see the club’s third trophy in three years. Champions League football. Semblance of the stability and success that was a staple in the SAF era. The Red Devils supporters will be roaring Fernandes’ name as the 30-year-old steps onto the pitch on Wednesday night.

Legacy. Glory. Eternity. The Portuguese magnifico can have it all with just one win. But, even if he doesn’t, it matters little. Bruno Fernandes made the Theatre dream again. Something no trophy can ever match. And for that, Old Trafford will remain eternally grateful.