Ruben Amorim has admitted he has been blown away by Bruno Fernandes since joining Manchester United last year. The midfielder has been a key player for the Red Devils since arriving from Sporting in 2020. He was one of United’s top performers in last weekend’s win over Liverpool at Anfield, their first win at Anfield in almost a decade.
Fernandes has been regarded as an essential asset by every United manager he has played under since joining the club. He is often criticized for being too emotional on the pitch, but Amorim believes that is a good thing. In a press conference on Friday, the Portugal coach explained how Fernandes has surprised him over the past 12 months.
“He was a little different than I expected (on arrival),” Amorim said. “The frustration he feels comes from a good place, but you don’t know it until you’re here. He hurts a lot when we lose, but he takes it personally. He’s a great leader.”
Fernandes will reach his 300th appearance for United when he plays against Brighton this weekend. That would almost certainly be the case considering he has started all of the Red Devils’ league games so far this season.
Ahead of Saturday’s game at Old Trafford, Amorim said: “It’s going to be a very difficult game. Brighton are really fun to watch. They’re really good in the build-up and they’re really strong in transition in all aspects of the game.”
“They’re a really complete team this season because they’re doing well with set-pieces. They’re a very strong team so we have to be really smart and really focus on everything we do.”
“You can tell by the way they play. They are really intense and have quality. I am a big fan of him (Fabian Hürzeler) because they believe a lot in what they are doing even under pressure.”
United will go into this match with high hopes of achieving their first three consecutive wins under Amorim.
Reflecting on his recent good results, he said: “First of all, we were really focused during the game and then we played a different game. Our identity, the way we play is one thing, but we adapt to the type of game we need to play at that moment.
“You could feel that the first half against Sunderland wasn’t the same as the second half. We know how to control it. Against Liverpool we scored right away with the first play and then we controlled the game and played a different style.”
“We needed it in that moment, which is good. We have good spirit at that time and sometimes when you have good spirit, there’s a little bit of luck that you need to win the game.”
