Bruno Fernandes is struggling to replicate the form that earned him a clutch of player of the year awards, and Manchester United’s start to the season has been poor. The Manchester United captain has three goals and one assist in six Premier League games, all coming in a single match against Ipswich, and his side have collected just six points, their worst league start in 40 years.
Only seven weeks have passed since Fernandes stood in the Manchester Opera House to accept the PFA Player of the Year award for 2025-26. He had already won the Premier League and Football Writers’ versions of the honour, recognising his phenomenal contribution to United’s unexpected third-place finish.
Fernandes scored nine goals and provided 21 assists last season, breaking a Premier League record jointly held by Thierry Henry and Kevin de Bruyne. Over the final 11 games, he either scored or created 12 of United’s 21 goals. In the seven-game run that carried United back into Europe’s elite club competition after a two-year absence, the 31-year-old was involved in nine of their 12 goals.
Statistically, it was a remarkable spell, reminiscent of Eric Cantona in the 1995-96 title-winning campaign, when he scored in six successive games, five of them in matches where 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 weight now, because this season’s figures are far less impressive.
A difficult start to the campaign
Fernandes has played every minute of United’s six Premier League games. His tally of three goals and one assist is better than last season, when he scored twice in the opening six games and created none. However, he was playing in the deeper midfield role that Ruben Amorim preferred at that point.
This season, Fernandes is taking more shots than at any time in recent years, averaging 3.3 per game, second only to his best of 3.5 in 2020-21. Yet his average of 0.8 shots on target is joint-second lowest of his time at Old Trafford. His chance creation, at 2.5 per game, is also his second lowest at the club and well down on the 4.0 he managed last season.
Most startling of all, he has created just one “big chance” so far this season, the lofted pass that sent Bryan Mbeumo clear of the Ipswich defence on 30 August. Last season, Fernandes averaged one per game.
These figures help explain why United have struggled so badly. The question is whether Fernandes is a cause of the malaise or a symptom of it.
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 match against Norway. 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 played the full 90 minutes in United’s 4-0 Champions League win against Azerbaijani champions Sabah FK.
United manager Michael Carrick does not see his captain’s condition as a problem 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 support around him
Towards the end of last season, when Fernandes was at his most prolific, Benjamin Sesko was a regular in the number nine role, and veteran Brazilian Casemiro anchored United’s midfield. Fernandes created four of the nine league goals Sesko has scored in 2026. He also set up four of the final five goals Casemiro scored for United from 1 February onwards.
The absence of Sesko and Casemiro is now clear. Casemiro left for Inter Miami in the summer, but his supporters would struggle to argue that United’s low running numbers stem only from his departure. His positioning and game knowledge remain of a high standard, and he gave Fernandes the freedom to take risks, knowing United would not be overrun on the counter-attack if he lost the ball.
Sesko’s fresh shin injury extends a spell of limited involvement that is being keenly felt, and there is no end date in sight.
The club’s power brokers ignored calls for more striking support in the summer and instead strengthened Carrick’s midfield. A plan to cover Sesko’s initial absence by using Mbeumo as a number nine was scrapped when Amad Diallo suffered an ankle injury just before the opening game at Hull. Matheus Cunha was given the role instead, but he repeatedly dropped deep, into the space Fernandes was occupying, and the pair never found an effective way of working around each other.
For Fernandes, this arrangement feels restrictive. He is not a player who lacks confidence, but his decision-making appears to be suffering. Against Tottenham at the weekend, it took him an incredible 23 minutes to complete a pass.
Pressure on the captain
On Monday, Carrick said no-one was “guaranteed” a place in his team, but he added enough caveats to suggest that leaving out his captain is not in his thinking.
United must improve, and that means Fernandes must improve too.
“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.”