Bruno Fernandes has produced far fewer end product for Manchester United this season than he did during their late-season surge, and the contrast is stark. His three goals and one assist, all against Ipswich, have come in six Premier League games, a return that has left questions over whether he is a cause of or a symptom of United’s poor start.
It is only seven weeks since Fernandes stood in the Manchester Opera House and spoke of his pride at being named PFA Player of the Year for 2025-26. The United captain had already won the Premier League and Football Writers’ versions of the award, in recognition of his phenomenal contribution to his side’s unexpected third-place finish.
Fernandes scored nine goals and claimed 21 assists last season, breaking a Premier League record jointly held by Thierry Henry and Kevin de Bruyne. Over the final 11 games, of the 21 goals United scored, he either scored or created 12 of them. In the seven-game run that swept United back into Europe’s elite club competition after a two-year absence, the 31-year-old was a central figure in nine of the 12 goals.
Statistically, it was remarkable, reminiscent of Eric Cantona in the 1995-96 title-winning campaign, when he scored in six successive games, five of them when United scored only once.
“It was a special season for me,” Fernandes told an appreciative audience. “I am very proud.
“But we don’t play tennis. We don’t play just for ourselves. We play for a team, we play for a club, we play for the fans. There is nothing more special than that.”
Those words carry particular resonance now, because compared with those exceptional statistics, there are far less impressive ones this season.
A quieter start to the season
Fernandes has played every minute of United’s six Premier League games. He has three goals and one assist, all of which came against Ipswich in the second game of the campaign, which remains United’s only win so far.
The numbers are better than last term, when he scored twice in the opening six games and created none. At that point, however, Fernandes was playing in the deeper midfield role that Ruben Amorim preferred.
This season, his average of 3.3 shots per game is his second highest, behind only the 3.5 he averaged in 2020-21. Yet his average of 0.8 shots on target is joint-second lowest. His chance creation, at 2.5 per game, is the second lowest of his time at Old Trafford and significantly down on the 4.0 he returned last season.
Even more startlingly, he has created just one “big chance” so far, the lofted pass that sent Bryan Mbeumo clear of the Ipswich defence on 30 August. Fernandes averaged one per game last season.
Those figures go some way to explaining why United have collected just six points from their opening six games. It is their worst start to a league campaign in 40 years, when Ron Atkinson was sacked to make way for Sir Alex Ferguson.
Fitness and form
There is uncertainty over the Portugal playmaker’s fitness. Fernandes rarely misses a game, but he was left out of the recent Nations League encounter with Norway, when national team boss Jorge Jesus said the former Sporting man was “playing through pain”.
Fernandes was fit enough to return for the final two internationals of the extended break. Before that, he completed the full 90 minutes in the 4-0 Champions League win against Azerbaijani champions Sabah FK.
United manager Michael Carrick does not see it as an issue as he prepares his side to face Atletico Madrid on Tuesday.
“He was carrying something but that happens a lot,” Carrick said. “Players play with issues.
“It’s not ideal but it is manageable. Bruno is able to play. That is the commitment he has got.
“He is pretty much over it, was really bright in training this morning and is looking forward to the game.”
Missing partners
Towards the end of last season, when Fernandes was at his most prolific, Benjamin Sesko was a regular in the number nine role, while veteran Brazilian Casemiro anchored United’s midfield.
Of the nine league goals Sesko has scored in 2026, Fernandes created four. He also set up four of the final five goals Casemiro scored as a United player from 1 February onwards.
It is clear that the presence of Sesko and Casemiro is being missed. Even Casemiro’s most ardent admirers could not claim United’s current low running stats are down solely to the 34-year-old leaving for Inter Miami in the summer, although his positioning and game knowledge remain of a high standard. Fernandes could take risks in the belief that United would not be overrun on transition if he lost the ball.
As for Sesko, his fresh shin injury extends a lack of involvement that is being keenly felt, and for which there is, as yet, no end date.
The club’s power brokers ignored calls for more striking support in the summer and instead reinforced Carrick’s midfield. A plan to cover the Slovenian’s initial absence by using Mbeumo as a number nine had to be scrapped when Amad Diallo suffered an ankle injury just before the opening game at Hull.
Matheus Cunha was given the job instead, but he repeatedly dropped deep into the space Fernandes was occupying, and the pair never found an effective way of dealing with it. For Fernandes, it feels restrictive. While he is not a player who lacks confidence, it seems his decision-making is being affected. Against Tottenham at the weekend, it took him an incredible 23 minutes to complete a pass.
Carrick’s stance
On Monday, as he looked ahead to the Champions League meeting with Atletico, Carrick said no one was “guaranteed” a place in his team. He added enough caveats to indicate that leaving out his captain is not in his thinking.
United must start to improve, and that means Fernandes must do the same.
“He’s a top player, Bruno,” Carrick said.
“Sometimes things don’t quite go for you. Sometimes you have a spell of that.
“But he’s done some incredible things for this football club and he will do the same in the future, there’s no doubt about that.”
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