Ruben Amorim, Manchester United manager, has urged critics to appreciate the overall performance of captain Bruno Fernandes rather than focusing solely on his shortcomings. This comes in response to former players who have been critical of Fernandes' leadership during poor performances.
Former Manchester United skipper Roy Keane recently criticized Fernandes, stating that "talent is not enough" and questioning his leadership skills. However, Amorim has defended his player by asking critics to stop seeing things in "black and white" and appreciate the nuances that contribute to a player's overall performance.
Fernandes responded to these criticisms by using them as motivation. He led United into the Europa League quarter-finals with a hat-trick during their 4-1 second leg win against Real Sociedad.
Perfect captain
Amorim praised Fernandes after securing a 5-2 aggregate victory over Real Sociedad which set up a Europa League quarter-final match against Lyon. He described him as the "perfect captain", emphasizing that his opinion was more important than Keane's criticism.
Ruben Amorim, Manchester United manager, said:
“I think he’s so important for this team, and you can see it by the numbers, and you can see from these last games, he’s always the guy that scores. It’s not the most important thing, it’s not the only thing, but he’s always there.
“When you play for this team, you have to be prepared for the critics and I understand that former players had a lot of success here and the standards for them were so high that they see the things like that sometimes as black and white.
“In life sometimes it’s not just black and white, there is some other colours and you have to understand the context. Again, he’s always there, trying his best, so I’m really proud to coach a player like him.”
Fernandes' availability for United is crucial given that they were without 11 players for three consecutive games due to various reasons. His leadership qualities are seen as vital for maintaining team morale during such challenging times.
Tough road ahead
As Manchester United prepares for their upcoming match against struggling Leicester City, there are hopes that some key players will return from injury. Manuel Ugarte is expected back on the bench after missing recent games while Harry Maguire pushes to return from an issue of his own.
Amorim stated they would try not risk Maguire unnecessarily but will assess him ahead of Sunday's game. In addition, Mason Mount is also expected make his first appearance since sustaining a hamstring issue in mid-December.
While criticism can be a part of any sport, it is essential to appreciate the overall contribution of players like Bruno Fernandes. His leadership and performance have been instrumental in Manchester United's recent successes, and his coach Ruben Amorim believes that he is the perfect captain for the team.
