Man Utd fans want star player 'sold' after AC Milan performance as key issue identified

Numerous Manchester United fans have urged the club to sell a key player after his lacklustre performance in Michael Carrick’s side’s 4-2 pre-season friendly defeat to AC Milan.

Ruben Amorim went up against United for the first time since he was sacked by the Premier League side back in January, and the Portuguese will no doubt be pleased with his side’s showing as they dominated the Red Devils, coming away with a convincing victory.

Carrick’s side took the lead through Harry Maguire’s header two minutes into the clash in Wroclaw, Poland, before Samuel Chukwueze levelled things on 37 minutes.

But it didn’t take United long to restore their advantage, with Patrick Dorgu putting them 2-1 up six minutes after the break.

However, from this point, Amorim’s side took charge, appearing fitter and more comfortable in possession.

The Italians drew level on 57 minutes through Alphadjo Cisse before summer signing Goncalo Ramos made it 3-2 with just over 20 minutes to play.

Former Chelsea and England midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek secured victory with Milan’s fourth with 19 minutes to play.

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Man United fans criticise performance in AC Milan defeat

Several players were criticised for their performances, including Luke Shaw, who was one of five players who completed the full 90 minutes alongside Maguire, Senne Lammens, Youri Tielemans and captain Bruno Fernandes.

And it was the United skipper who came in for criticism after the match, with some supporters even suggesting the club needed to sell him despite the Portugal international winning the FWA Footballer of the Year award last term.

Fernandes even missed a penalty for the second time in a week, with the scores at 1-1, having also failed to score from the spot in a penalty shootout against Leeds United at Dublin’s Croke Park on August 12.

One fan said: “If you watched our last 2 pre-season games, you saw how we controlled games and dominated possession. Then Bruno Fernandes came back and suddenly we forgot how to play football.”

Another added: “I have said it multiple times and I’ll continue saying it. No tactical gameplay works with Bruno Fernandes on the pitch. He doesn’t play to instructions, he’s prone to disorganising the press, can’t kick the ball around, and is not tidy and compact on the ball. All he does is play urgency football. We are never winning anything meaningful with him.”

A third claimed: “I’ve praised Bruno Fernandes, but he needs to realise he’s not the hero saving United anymore. There’s quality in this attack, so he needs to share now or get benched.”

While a fourth commented: “Time to sell Bruno Fernandes, not because he missed a penalty, but because he’s too indisciplined and always makes us lose possession. With him in the team, we can never play possession-based football.”

As a fifth wrote: “Bruno Fernandes played 90 minutes for Manchester United today, and the only times I saw him were when he missed the pen and when he was sending long balls outside the pitch.”

Despite some fans’ wishes, United are unlikely to sell their captain and most prevalent attacking threat anytime soon, with the 31-year-old under contract until 2027. Marcus Rashford returned to the side after loan spells at Aston Villa and Barcelona, with the forward introduced on 61 minutes.

United get their Premier League campaign underway with a trip to newly-promoted Hull City on August 22.