Rasmus Hojlund has voiced his opinion that the criticism directed at Bruno Fernandes is unwarranted, praising the midfielder’s exceptional leadership as Manchester United’s captain.
After transferring from Sporting to Old Trafford in 2020 for £67 million, Fernandes quickly became a standout attacking force in the Premier League, ending his debut season as United’s leading scorer with 28 goals across all competitions.
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Despite not replicating his initial extraordinary success in the subsequent three years, the 29-year-old continues to be a pivotal figure and a guiding force under Erik ten Hag’s management, having assumed the captaincy from Harry Maguire the previous summer.
Fernandes has contributed significantly this season with 15 goals and 11 assists. Nonetheless, he has faced considerable scrutiny during a season that has fallen short of expectations, with Manchester United’s prospects for a top-four finish dwindling.
Amidst a challenging season, Manchester United is poised to end on a positive note with the upcoming FA Cup final against reigning champions Manchester City at Wembley—a rematch of the previous year’s final.
Amidst rising tensions at Old Trafford, there were reports of Hojlund’s discontent with Fernandes’s lack of assists. However, after addressing the issue with the coaching staff, it seems the Danish forward has resolved any differences with Fernandes.
In a recent interview with BBC Sport’s Football Focus, Hojlund expressed his appreciation for Fernandes’s assist in United’s 4-2 victory over Sheffield United and stood up for the Portuguese player against the criticism he has received.
‘I just want to tell him: “Thanks for the ball, Bruno!”,’ Hojlund said.
‘I was very happy for him because he’s also getting a lot of criticism.
‘It’s not fair because he’s doing everything at a top level all the time and he’s an amazing captain.’
According to Hojlund, Man United have the opportunity to ‘do something special’ by upsetting Manchester City in the cup final.
‘We have a chance to win the cup. It’s my first chance to win silverware,’ he added.
‘For me, this is a big game and I think we have a good chance to do something special now for the rest of the season.’
Hojlund shared his profound elation upon scoring his first Premier League goal, a decisive late strike that secured United’s win against Aston Villa on Boxing Day.
‘I was just happy in the end that everything was done and I could finally start playing for my favourite team. Dreams don’t get much better than that,’ he explained.
‘2-0 down at half-time [against Aston Villa], we talked through it and we were saying that we need to keep on going and we would get the goals and suddenly we were 3-2 up, I scored my first Premier League goal.
‘There were some great emotions there.’
