Roy Keane has hit back brutally at Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes with a scathing post on social media. The former Reds midfielder has given a scathing assessment of the Portugal international, calling Fernandes a “donkey”. Fernandes had a fantastic season at Old Trafford, setting the Premier League record for assists in a single season with 21.
But the Portuguese captain has come under scrutiny, with United legend Keane labeling him the center of a “circus act” following the 3-2 win over Nottingham Forest on the penultimate weekend of the season. Mr Fernandes made his displeasure with Mr Keene’s comments abundantly clear on Monday’s podcast The Diary Of A CEO, accusing him of “lying”.
He said, “As I always say, I don’t care about criticism. I’ve always accepted criticism from everyone, but I don’t respond to anything.”
“People have opinions. They think it’s good or bad. What I don’t like is when people lie about things. In this case, what you said about Roy Keane is basically a lie because either he saw the other interviews or the one thing I didn’t say is luckily on record.
“I accept his criticism and I accept that he may like or dislike me as a player, like me or dislike me as a person. But what I don’t like is when he puts words out of my mouth that he didn’t say. That’s the only thing I don’t like.”
Keene appeared to attack Fernandez again with a cryptic post on his Instagram Story. The 54-year-old shared an image of a donkey with two lions looming in the background.
The post has a straightforward caption: “Too much attention makes donkeys think they’re lions.”
The former Ireland international previously told the Overlap podcast: “When I was interviewed after the[Forest]game, the Manchester United captain said: “Maybe I should have taken a few shots, but I ended up making a pass.” Wow. How is it possible for a soccer player to go into a match feeling like he’s aiming for a personal record?
“With that kind of team mentality, he won’t win trophies.” Fernandes’ comments after the actual match were as follows: “There were moments today where I probably should have passed instead of shot. I’m very happy with the assist, but more than that I’m happy with the win and ending the season on a good note.”
Former United captain Keane appears to have misinterpreted Fernandes’ comments rather than trying to distort the truth. Nevertheless, there are fears that a war of words could break out between two of the Reds’ best ever midfielders.
