Bruno Fernandes

Decoding Bruno Fernandes, Manchester United's New Portuguese Talisman

In the name of Bruno Fernandes, Manchester United have found their magic man at long last.

As the story goes, Bruno Miguel Borges Fernandes is now the talisman of Manchester United, one of the biggest football clubs in the world. But unlike most other superstars who were recognized as prodigies right from a young age and made one major career move after another, the Portuguese midfielder had a rather subdued start.

To put things in perspective, Cristiano Ronaldo – the other major talent to arrive at Old Trafford from Portugal – was donning a United shirt by the time he was 18. But at the same age, Fernandes was operating under the radar, having moved from the Under-19 side of a third-division Portuguese team to the second division in Italy.

Humble Beginnings In Portugal

Fernandes was born in 1991, in Gueifaes, a Portuguese district on the outskirts of Maia, 15 minutes from Porto. As a kid, he played football on the streets. While he was always more skillful than the other kids, his superior physique and strength meant that he grew up playing as a defender.

The first major challenge arrived when his father, Jose Fernandes, wanted to move the family to Switzerland in search of a better life. But the teenaged Bruno was against the move. He felt football was not big enough in Switzerland and that a move at that point would be detrimental to his pursuit of a career in the sport. In the end, Jose made the move to Switzerland while his wife Virginia Borges stayed back in Gueifaes with her son Bruno.

He joined Boavista, a club in the third division of Portugal, as a ten-year-old in 2004. He stayed with them for eight seasons until his move to Italy in 2012. But five of those years were spent on loan at another club called Pasteleira and that's where his transition to midfield took place. When he was 15, Pasteleira were struggling without a No. 10 in their midfield and the coach decided to play Fernandes there because of his passing ability. The move turned out to be a masterstroke and midfield became Fernandes' permanent position.

The Move To Italy

Finally, in 2012, Mauro Borghetti, the then head of youth at Novaro in Italy, spotted Bruno playing for the Boavista Under-19 team and wanted to sign him. Novaro were playing in Serie A but were struggling to stay alive in the top division of Italian football. By the summer when Bruno would make his move, the club would be relegated to Serie B. Boavista were also desperate to raise funds and so parted with their midfielder for a meager €40,000 fee.

Despite his move to Novaro, his Under-19 days were not behind him. He spent the first half of the 2012-13 season playing for the Novaro Under-19s, occasionally playing cameos for the first team. But such was his impact that by Christmas, Bruno had become a regular starter for the main team as he helped Novaro to fifth place in Serie B. He finished the season with 4 goals in 23 appearances but could not stop Novaro from losing to Empoli in the promotion play-offs.

However, one season in Italy was enough for the big clubs to take notice. In the summer of 2013, he was signed by Udinese to play in the Italian first division. He spent three seasons at Udinese, making 95 appearances and scoring 11 times.

In 2016, he moved to Udinese's Serie A rivals Sampdoria. He was given the No. 10 shirt previously worn by club legend and former captain Roberto Mancini when he led them to their only Scudetto in 1991. In his only season with the club, Bruno scored 5 goals in 33 Serie A appearances, helping Sampdoria to a 10th-place finish.

The Return To Portugal

The following summer, in 2017, Bruno made his return to Portugal. He was signed by Sporting Clube de Portugal for €8.5m plus bonuses. Having left Portugal as a novice and returned as a first-teamer, Fernandes started making his mark for Sporting immediately. He scored 16 goals and set up 20 more as the club won the Portuguese League Cup and Fernandes was named the Primeira Liga Player Of The Year.

But success in the cup competition was not enough for the fans of the club. The failure to qualify for the Champions League saw a group of 50 ultras break into the club's training ground and attack the players with fists, belts and sticks. This incident led a lot of players into worrying for their families' safety and as many as 9 players including Fernandes ripped up their contracts. With clubs from England and Spain looking to sign him, there were a plethora of options at Fernandes' feet.

However, the club managed to resolve things with him over the summer and Fernandes returned to Sporting for what is reported to be the same salary as before. The return proved to be beneficial for both the player and the club. Fernandes scored a whopping 32 goals and set up 17 more as Sporting defended their League Cup title and also won the Portuguese Cup. Having set the record for the most goals scored in a single season by a midfielder across Europe, Fernandes was named the Primeira Liga Player Of The Year once again.

The Arrival In England

With 63 goals and 48 assists in 135 appearances across two and half seasons in Portugal, it became increasingly difficult for Sporting CP to hold on to their superstar as the biggest clubs in Europe started lining up for his signature. Finally, Manchester United won the race in January 2020, paying an initial €55 million to make Fernandes only the sixth Portuguese player to pull on the famous scarlet jersey.

Before his arrival, United were in dire straits, desperately seeking a spark of creativity and that is exactly what Fernandes added. Despite making his debut in a goalless draw against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Fernandes scored or assisted in their next 4 Premier League matches. With each passing game, his influence and importance in the United squad grew as he went about scoring and setting up goals and making United a force to reckon with again.

Despite the season being interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic just a month after his arrival, Fernandes finished the season strongly with 12 goals and 8 assists in all competitions. He was named the Manchester United Player Of the Season, becoming the second Portuguese player to win the award after Ronaldo. Since the inception of the award in the 1987-88 season, no player has won it having played as few matches in a season as Fernandes' 22 appearances in all competitions. That is the extent of the impact he has had for United since his arrival!

His rich vein of form continued into the next season as well. He ended 2020 with 4 Premier League Player of the Month titles, becoming the first player in history to achieve the feat in a calendar year. To put the importance of that achievement in context, he has already matched the overall tallies of Ronaldo and Paul Scholes and is just one behind United legends Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie.

The 2020-21 season has been even more fruitful. His personal contributions saw the likes of Edinson Cavani, Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood step up as they pushed Manchester United to second place in the Premier League standings and also helped them to the Europa League final where they will meet Villarreal. At the time of writing, the Portuguese international has 27 goals and 17 assists this season for the Red Devils.

Despite having played his first full season with devastating results, Fernandes continues to radiate the feeling that he is still warming up to the Premier League. With a few additions to the squad and with their beloved No. 18 at the heart of it all, United look all set to challenge the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea for the Premier League title in the upcoming season!

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