Bruno Fernandes has been at Manchester United since January 2020, just two weeks after Harry Maguire was appointed captain by Ole Solskjaer, replacing Ashley Young. However, since the Portuguese star arrived at Old Trafford, there have been signs that he will take on this responsibility in the future.
That is the time when the COVID-19 epidemic is rampant. In an interview featuring Ole and Bruno via zoom, the Norwegian strategist suddenly said that Bruno would be the captain the next day when playing. That joking statement from the former "Red Devils" captain surprised the new signing of Man United. He reiterated that it was an honor beyond expectations.
Returning to the present, Bruno being captain was both surprising and not surprising. In the Red Devils squad for more than a year under Ten Hag, many players have emerged as leaders to soon replace Harry Maguire such as David De Gea (who has just left the team), Rafael Varane (the leader of the defense but often injured), Casemiro ( blocking the midfield) or Marcus Rashford (the leader of the attack). The increasing appearance of such pillars is a good sign for Ten Hag, it shows that the team has been upgraded in quality evenly.
After the match against Lyon in Norway, Ten Hag intended to announce who would wear the club's captain's armband. However, before going to the US, that was still not possible because the team had not gathered enough members. It was not until the first training session after arriving in the land of the stars and stripes that the Dutch captain announced it to ensure transparency and respect for all remaining members.
Why is that? If Ten Hag announces this in front of a group of players, he could be seen as disrespectful to those who were not informed directly. There were M.U stars last season who did not want Maguire to continue as captain but they would not say that in the dressing room. The head coach's announcement before all was fair and extinguished the out-of-stream stories about the captain's armband from here.
Ten Hag chose Bruno because he saw the Portuguese midfielder as responsible for wearing the captain's armband every time on the pitch, even though the armband was likened to a thousand-kg weight that had fallen on Maguire's psychology in the past 2 seasons. In addition, the ability to communicate well with teammates also helps Bruno gain more trust, unlike Maguire who cannot do this.
In April, before playing at Tottenham, Bruno was injured and had to take a knee to practice when he arrived at Carrington. He did not need help from others and did not need to fight. After that, he and the whole team brought home 1 point from North London. Bruno played the full 90 minutes and had 1 assist for Marcus Rashford.
"He is a strong, responsible man and always wants to play. We are happy that he has always been an important part of Manchester United and has always made a big impact on the pitch. Now, Bruno is the captain of Manchester United and that makes everyone really happy.
He is a shining example, who always knows how to endure and considers every situation very carefully. Bruno is always willing to sacrifice, not hesitating much between playing or not playing and always yearning to do something. Once again, he has proven to the whole team how great he is as a captain," Ten Hag said ahead of the 2-2 draw with Spurs in April.
After a humiliating 0-7 defeat to Liverpool, Bruno Gary Neville was criticized for not being worthy of being captain. He did not respond and proved that Neville was wrong in the following matches. Bruno said, he is always himself in all circumstances. The Portuguese star continues to be the core of the team's playing style, ending the season with a Champions League ticket and a League Cup title.
In Bruno Fernandes, Ten Hag seems to have found his true self on the pitch, a versatile person, always hungry for victory and always based on smart thinking to play football.
