Manchester United legend Roy Keane has urged Erik ten Hag to strip the ‘whinging’ Bruno Fernandes of the club captaincy.
Bruno Fernandes has been an impressive performer for Manchester United since joining the club, Roy Keane believes that he is not captain material. The Portuguese international seems to have angered the former Manchester United captain with his constant moaning and whinging during games.
“Today having watched him again I would take the captaincy off him 100 per cent,” Sky Sports pundit Keane said on Super Sunday before adding, “I know it’s a big decision, obviously they changed the captaincy with Maguire, but Fernandes is not captain material.”
“He is a talented player no doubt about it. But what I saw today – we’ve discussed many times before, it was last season at Liverpool – his whinging, his moaning and throwing his arms up in the air constantly. It really isn’t acceptable. From what we saw today, I’m thinking I would take that off him.”
“You have to start somewhere. We were talking about where do you start [fixing the problems] – the manager, board level. I would start with that because the manager is capable of doing that. Fernandes is a brilliant footballer but in terms of captain material he is the opposite to what I would want in a captain.”
Keane has also criticised Marcus Rashford previously, and he obviously has high standards. Meanwhile, Fernandes was criticised for such antics against Liverpool last season as well. The Portuguese international clearly has a tendency to get frustrated when things are not going his way. It was a similar situation on Sunday during the Manchester Derby.
The 29-year-old will have to be more calm and composed during games in future games. He must do better to inspire and lift his teammates when the chips are down. Meanwhile, Manchester City picked up an emphatic 3-0 win over Manchester United in the derby, and the defeat left Fernandes frustrated.
The Red Devils have made a disappointing start to the season, and it will be interesting to see if they can bounce back strongly in the coming months. A club of their stature was expected to challenge for the league title. Instead, it seems like they will face an uphill battle for UEFA Champions League qualification this season.
Erik ten Hag was backed significantly during the summer transfer window. But his signings have not been able to hit the ground running. Manchester United will expect him to turn things around soon, and it remains to be seen how the situation develops. The Dutchman could easily find himself under pressure if things do not improve in the coming weeks.
As for Fernandes, perhaps taking the armband from him will allow him to play without any added pressure, and it will let him perform at a high level. It will be interesting to see how is appointed as the club’s next captain if ten Hag decides to relieve Fernandes of his captaincy duties.
