Bruno Fernandes exclusive: Inside the mind of Man Utd's assist king & how he's become a goal-creating monster

Fernandes operates as a No.10 for United, and is at his most effective in and around the box, but often gives into his natural urge to drop deep and orchestrate the build-up play. This stems from his early footballing education at Italian clubs Novara, Udinese, and Sampdoria, where he sat in front of the defence as a playmaker in the mould of Andrea Pirlo.

After joining Sporting CP in 2017, Fernandes moved forward as more of a box-to-box midfielder, and his goals and assists output quickly increased. The opportunity to work with Raphinha - the former Leeds winger who has gone on to emerge as a Ballon d'Or contender at Barcelona - for two full seasons in Portugal had a transformative effect on Fernandes' game as he started to take more risks on the ball.

"I was lucky enough in my career sense, and more when I came to the Premier League, to have players that understood I will see the picture before. So they make the run a little bit earlier because they know I'm going to see that. I realised that when I went to Sporting, that was the step that I made to become even better," Fernandes said on the Beast Mode On Podcast. "I played with players there like Raphinha, who was one of the players I got in with the pass, because he was also someone that understood; 'Bruno can go one touch here so I have to go'. That helped me a lot to have players in front of me that also recognise that I'm going to read it quicker."

Fernandes' technique and execution were a joy to behold at Sporting, and he's become even more polished at United. However, his ability to scan the pitch and always stay one step ahead of opponents is what really sets him apart from his peers.

"I have to visualise the game. Whenever the ball is being played I need to be looking around to see what's going on, what's going to be the pass," he says. "The biggest strength in my career has always been the way I think and the way I do things a little bit quicker because I'm not the fastest, not the strongest, so I need to visualise things before and try to make them happen before some people realise I'm going to do that. I think that was my main skill and my main thing to become a top footballer on the top level."

Fernandes can't be physically bullied because he's too elusive and clever. He's a master at anticipating where space is going to open up and playing the ball into areas that his team-mates can cause the most damage. When they're on his wavelength, like Raphinha was, it's almost impossible to prevent him cutting through.

Anthony Martial, Edinson Cavani and Marcus Rashford have managed to make the most of Fernandes' genius at United down the years, and Benjamin Sesko built up a strong connection with the Portuguese maestro in the second half of last season. He seems to have a map of the pitch in the front of his mind and constantly looks for ways to unlock rigid defensive blocks instead of passing sideways or backwards.

Despite already being a complete midfielder who would probably get into the starting XI at any of Europe's elite clubs, Fernandes never stops striving for improvement. For him, training intensity is the key to unlocking the best version of himself on matchdays.

"When you play is when you get better. I've always dealt with my training sessions as a game all the time," he asserts. "That was probably the difference to become even better. I'm not satisfied to just go to training. I need to train at maximum capacity."

Fernandes also possesses a fierce competitive streak, and a tough edge that stems from his childhood. "Growing up, in my time, you play in the streets a lot," he added. "I was always one of the youngest, because my brother is five years older than me, so I was playing against him and his friends. I got used to getting beat but also to beating people who were stronger than me. So I'm never afraid to put my foot in or to go into duels."

In other words, United's skipper loves a challenge and takes an 'if it's not hard, I'm not growing' attitude onto the training field. Fernandes is especially diligent when it comes to ironing out his weaknesses, detailing one such example that saw him go toe-to-toe with Sesko.

"Last season in training I had to do a 50-yard run with Benjamin Sesko," he revealed. "I started two steps earlier and he was behind me so I was pushing myself and I beat my highest top speed that was 35.5 [km/h]. He got to 37 [km/h] something at the end so that's why he caught me at the end but I was so proud of myself because Ben is such a strong and physical player, and very quick. But this is the thing I like in training, to go up against the ones that I know are better than me at something so I can test myself."

That determination has also made Fernandes a model captain. There were some teething problems when he initially took the armband from Harry Maguire in 2023, but Fernandes has gradually morphed into a true leader. He's a confident, clear communicator, sets a shining example with his quality on the ball and effort off it, and everyone looks to him for inspiration.

The post-Sir Alex Ferguson era at Old Trafford has been largely miserable, but no other player has done more to try and restore the club to past glories. Even if you don't buy into his captaincy credentials, that fact is indisputable based on his remarkable record of 219 goal involvements in 329 appearances across all competitions.

Every single United fan on the planet would agree that Fernandes is the club's best signing of the last 13 years. He is also regularly compared with the legendary figures who played key roles under Ferguson.

Crucially, though, Fernandes never gets carried away with the hype, saying of his overarching philosophy: "What I put in myself is to be a better version of myself and not trying to beat someone else."

However, as the figurehead of a club the size of United, Fernandes is also an easy target for critics. Indeed, former Red Devils tend to come down on him hardest, including Roy Keane, who described Fernandes' pursuit of the Premier League assists record as a "circus act" and suggested that he was prioritising it ahead of winning matches.

Patrice Evra, meanwhile, recently claimed that Fernandes is too single-minded, saying on his Kick stream, on behalf of Stake: "Now that he’s won the Player of the Year award, I don’t want to see him win it again. I want Bruno to play a part of the team. My worry with Bruno is that he doesn’t control the game. I played with people like Paul Scholes, Sir Alex Ferguson would say, ‘Pass to Paul Scholes,’ because he knows when to control the game, to go forward or to keep possession."

These kind of comments are extremely unfair. United would never have qualified for the Champions League last term without Fernandes driving them forward at every opportunity; he's a born winner and asking him to play a more restrained game would strip the team of it's most potent weapon.

It would be understandable if Fernandes' confidence fluctuated because of all the outside noise. Fortunately for United and their current manager Michael Carrick, though, he is strong willed enough to block it out.

"I've always said to myself to believe in yourself. Because throughout your career, you're going to have moments where people will doubt how good you are, or how good you can be," Fernandes says. "That will always be there, from the beginning to the end. It's not going to change. Doesn't how much you show it. Doesn't matter how many of these (points at the PFA Player of the Year trophy) you get. People are always going to doubt.

"At a high level you always, week by week and sometimes every three days you're going to get some credit, other days you're going to get some bad words. You just have to deal with that and believe in yourself because if you get in certain places it's because you've done something right."

Fernandes deserves far greater appreciation, especially when you consider how loyal he's been to United. Real Madrid were heavily linked with a swoop for the Portugal international not long ago, and he rejected a lucrative switch to Saudi Arabia last year that would have provided him and his family with riches beyond their wildest dreams.

United have only won an FA Cup and League Cup during Fernandes' six-year spell, so no one could have blamed him if his head had turned. But the Portuguese, who is reportedly in talks to extend his contract beyond it's 2027 expiry date, has publicly declared how passionate he is about achieving greater things in Manchester.

Despite what Keane may believe, that means team success rather than more individual recognition. Fernandes' reply when asked what the assist record means to him goes someway to underscoring that. He acknowledged it was a "special" feat, but added: "It was never an aim to overtake Thierry and Kevin."

Any further records Fernandes breaks will just be by-products of his insatiable desire to drag United back to the top. Only time will tell whether Carrick's side have enough strength in depth to win the biggest trophies this term, but it is certain that Fernandes will again give his all to their cause until the very end.

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