Arsene Wenger Talks About Bruno Fernandes’ Performance

Bruno Fernandes was undoubtedly the biggest positive for the Red Devils last season. Manchester United looked a transformed side as a result of his creative prowess and offensive potential and the sheer number of goals he netted and created over the long campaign is a testament to that.

At the same time, Ole Gunnar Solskjær and company are arguably far too reliant on him, as evidenced by just how often he appeared to be fatigued during certain key games.

This was evident even in the crucial Europa League final against Villarreal wherein the Portuguese star was unable to muster enough danger to give United a steady advantage.

As per Arsene Wenger, fatigue was the key reason there.

Speaking to beIN Sports, the former Arsenal manager was curt in his appraisal of what went wrong, opining: “I personally feel that he finished the season on his knees, and he missed the spark.”

With a whopping 66 appearances for club and country across the last campaign, it is easy to see how the 26-year-old may have been out of breath.

Wenger goes on to add: “Sometimes you can see as well, I found him much more nervous in the game. So that, as well, is a sign of fatigue. Your top-level is calm, concentration, control. And in the last four or five games, I found him a bit weak on that front.”

Heading into the transfer window, Solskjær will have to do a lot to amend this recurring issue. The same also holds true for Marcus Rashford on the left flank.

One means with which to achieve the same is giving Donny van de Beek the nod more often, a feat that was a rarity for the Dutchman in his inaugural year at Old Trafford.