In the first few months of the Premier League season, when many Manchester United were waiting for Ruben Amorim to go, Bruno Fernandes was unusually quiet. He didn’t make an assist until 19 October, but since then he has been doing what he always does. Having joined United in 2020, Fernandes has been the team’s most consistent creator by a long way. This season, he had his eye on the all-time Premier League assists record, jointly held by former Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne and ex-Arsenal attacker Thierry Henry.
Football Writers’ Association player of the year
Fernandes was recently voted the Football Writers’ Association men’s footballer of the year. It was the first time in 9 years that a non-Liverpool or Manchester City player won the award, and also the first time since 2013 that a player outside the top 2 won. Although Fernandes was not part of the title race, he beat Arsenal’s Declan Rice by 28 votes. The Athletic’s United correspondent, Laurie Whitwell, said Fernandes benefitted from the club being out of European football this season (Fernandes only played two club games outside the Premier League).
Fellow Athletic writer Michael Cox said Fernandes was deserving of the award, but that if there was “ever a season to spoil your ballot paper”, this would be it. Although Cox felt that Fernandes achieved a level of consistency not matched by some legendary No 10s, he said that the Portuguese playmaker had won because the individual quality elsewhere had dipped. One alternative was Rayan Cherki, but the City player was injured early in the season and on the bench several times in 2026. Another was Cherki’s teammate Erling Haaland, but he hadn’t scored many non-penalty goals since the turn of the year.
Cox decided to vote for nobody. He wrote that no Premier League player had been at the “requisite standard”, and the football hadn’t been good enough to watch. There was a lack of technical quality and inspiration from players. The writer put this down to the increased focus on physical intensity and set pieces. The latter area is where Fernandes shined.
Fernandes’ set pieces
Fernandes’ underlying numbers – expected assists (xA) per 90 minutes – aren’t hugely different from those of previous seasons. In fact, they’re worse than in 2022-23. But his teammates have taken their chances better, particularly from set pieces. Fernandes had created six goals for Casemiro, who enjoyed his best goalscoring season for United, before the time of voting.
With Portugal this summer, Fernandes will have another dominant aerial presence to aim for at corners and free kicks. Fernandes will join his former club teammate Cristiano Ronaldo at the World Cup. Pundits in his home country have called this the nation’s best ever squad. But the current sports betting odds suggest Portugal are unlikely to go all the way. Most bookmakers price them at around 13/2 to reach the semi-finals and 11/1 to reach the final. The favourites for World Cup 2026 include Spain, France, and Argentina.
Fernandes won the UEFA Nations League with Portugal in 2019 and 2025. Their team has many of the same stars in place, with certain players like Vitinha and Rafael Leao arguably getting even better.
Henry and De Bruyne
Henry recorded 20 assists for Arsenal in the 2002-03 season and De Bruyne matched his tally for Man City in 2019-20. Arsenal won the title in 2003, despite United’s Ruud van Nistelrooy finishing as top goalscorer. Henry won the PFA Players’ Player of the Year award, and his goal against Tottenham in November 2002 won Goal of the Season.
De Bruyne’s team finished second to Liverpool in 2019-20, a season interrupted by the pandemic. De Bruyne won two Goal of the Month awards and his teammate David Silva joined in the midfield of the PFA Team of the Year.
In May, Fernandes admitted he was thinking about surpassing their record having reached 19 assists. In the 24 matches since his first assist in October, he created 0.79 goals per game.
Fernandes’ future
Last summer, there were rumours of Fernandes being sold to Saudi Arabian club Al Hilal. Since, the midfielder has admitted the club were happy enough to let him go. But Fernandes was determined to stay.
The player has a release clause to clubs outside England, reported to be around £56 million. Fernandes’ current contract expires in 2027 and it is expected that he will discuss his future with United this summer.
Interim manager Michael Carrick said that Fernandes was clearly happy at the club and that the current season was perhaps as good as he’s ever played.
