Bruno Fernandes has been “manipulated” by Portugal teammate Cristiano Ronaldo's return to Manchester United and “allowed himself to be mentally bullied.”
That is according to former United star Paul Parker, who believes that Fernandes is not “grabbing hold” of matches as he did before Ronaldo’s arrival.
Fernandes has been lauded for his impact at Old Trafford after his £47m transfer from Sporting CP in January 2020.
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The 27-year-old Portuguese midfielder has scored four times and registered six assists in 13 appearances across all competitions this season.
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Fernandes missed a crucial 93rd-minute penalty against Aston Villa in a 1-0 defeat in September, which prompted questions over Ronaldo stepping up as United’s designated spot-kick taker.
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The Portugal international’s influence at United this season has been brought into question amid the club’s disappointing run of form and results.
Ronaldo, who returned to United in the summer from Juventus, has remained in fine goalscoring form for the Red Devils and made an impact in the club's dressing room.
However, Parker believes that the 36-year-old Portugal captain’s return to Old Trafford has “affected” Fernandes.
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When asked which United player needs to produce the most improved performance against Tottenham, he told Betfred: “I think we have to talk about Luke Shaw. I think he’s maybe been reading his own headlines.
“I look at his appearance on the pitch now -- it isn’t very good. It’s not a good look. I think he’s looking in this manner now after scoring in a European Championship final. I don’t know whether that’s got to him but he’s not the player who was there at the back end of last season.
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“The main player for me is [Bruno] Fernandes. I think he’s been manipulated by [Cristiano] Ronaldo’s return and I think that’s affected him.
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“He’s allowed himself to be mentally bullied out of doing all the good things he was doing before. He shirked responsibility in the Leicester [City] game when he would have took [sic] it on himself normally but he decided to take the pass to Ronaldo.
“He’s not grabbing hold of games as he did before. He’s not making opportunities anymore and you have to look at him and think to yourself ‘why is that?’
“And there’s only one reason: it’s because he feels he’s got to deliver to Ronaldo and I think there’s a few other players like that as well. But he sticks out because he’s been instrumental in all that United have achieved up until this season.”
United will travel to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday for their clash with Spurs, with kick-off scheduled for 5:30pm UK time.
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: Bruno Fernandes, Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester United, Premier League, England, Football