Former Manchester United defender Patrice Evra has revealed how Bruno Fernandes reacted to Cristiano Ronaldo re-joining the Premier League giants last summer. The club legend further went on to claim that the Portuguese midfielder is now the ‘boss’ at United following the departure of Ronaldo earlier this month. Ronaldo left the Red Devils by agreeing a mutual contract termination after he ripped apart them in an explosive interview with Piers Morgan.
However, his exit had divided opinions as some felt the club did not respect one of their legends as they should have, while others argued United are better off as a ‘team’ without Cristiano Ronaldo, and it seems Evra is siding with the latter. The former France international has explained how Ronaldo’s Portugal teammate Bruno Fernandes is coming full circle at United since he left the club, after the midfielder’s blistering display in his side’s 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest.
I can’t play with every player – Fernandes after Cristiano Ronaldo’s arrival at United
While Bruno Fernandes and Cristiano Ronaldo seemed like a dream duo on the pitch, Evra has suggested it was not always like that. The pro-turned-pundit feels Fernandes’ importance at the club was inhibited by his national team’s captain arriving there. Fernandes was on the back of a staggering 20/21 season, wherein he had smashed a brilliant 28 goals and provided 17 assists in 58 games in all competitions.
However, the following season, after the arrival of Ronaldo, Fernandes managed a mere 10 goals and 14 assists in 46 games, almost half the tally he had racked up one season earlier. The returning Ronaldo took over the centre stage at Old Trafford, which according to Evra hindered Fernandes’ progress at the club. Speaking to Amazon Prime Video after United’s 3-0 win over Nottingham, the former France international said:
“Bruno Fernandes has to be the main man and you can feel it now Ronaldo is not here anymore and you can feel that he is the boss again. He is the one taking the free-kicks, the one taking the corner kicks and I am sorry, that is what Bruno Fernandes needs.
“I remember when I talked with him after a game and he didn’t want to say that, because he would be like ‘I can’t play with every player’, but you can’t have two chefs like they say in French, and that’s what happened so I am not surprised about the performance of Bruno Fernandes.”
In a bigger picture, Evra’s claims might just be true as it was evident from his numbers that Fernandes had to accept a role behind national teammate. Cristiano took over the set-pieces’ duties from the attacking midfielder who had to alter his playing style as well in order to feed in the striker up front. As a result, in the 18 months the two Portuguese internationals were at United, Fernandes could only manage 13 goals and 17 assists across 66 appearances.
Now that Ronaldo has moved on from the club, Fernandes seems to be enjoying his centre-stage once again. The 28-year-old was an effervescent player against Burnley in the Carabao Cup and pulled the strings against Forest helping his side to a 3-0 win. Ronaldo’s departure is evidently proving to be a blessing in disguise in one or the other way at Old Trafford.