“Ronaldo not the reason for my poor form” – Fernandes

Manchester United midfielder Bruno Fernandes has stated that his drop in form for the club has nothing to do with the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo last summer.

Fernandes provided 29 goals and 19 assists during his first 53 Premier League appearances after joining Manchester United from Sporting Lisbon in January 2020, quickly playing a pivotal role in the team.

However, ever since his Portuguese counterpart Ronaldo arrived at Old Trafford, there has been a significant drop in goal contributions from the midfielder having just scored eight goals in the 40 league appearances since.

Fernandes has now rubbished talks that his poor form is Ronaldo’s fault.

“Most of my assists last season were for him, so I don’t think (it is fair),” he told The Athletic.

“I just had a poor season in terms of my own numbers. I don’t think it is about Cristiano or myself.

“Before he came, I was also taking the penalties, but I had two chances to take the penalties last season and I missed both. So I cannot blame Cristiano for taking penalties, especially when he scores them.

“When I missed against Arsenal in April, it was him who gave me the ball and said, “Go yourself and score”. I missed but I felt that he trusted me to be the one to step up and score in the big moment.

“So I don’t think it is because of Cristiano, it is because I didn’t do the best in myself in some moments to get goals or assists.”

Recommended Articles:

• “It’s easier to win the ballon d’Or in Barcelona than at Bayern” – Lewandowski
• Everton open new contract talks with rejuvenated Alex Iwobi
• “Why I chose Barcelona over Chelsea” – Jules Kounde
• Paul Pogba’s brother ARRESTED as extortion case continues
• “Learn to dive!” – Mourinho tells players after seeing red for penalty complaint

Ronaldo has mostly been relegated to the bench by Erik ten Hag this season, coming on as a substitute in most of the fixtures. The Portugal captain scored his first goal of the season in the 2-0 win against Sheriff Tiraspol in the Europa League, a game which he started.

Ronaldo and Fernandes both play for Portugal and have both been named in Fernando Santos’ Nations League squad ahead of Portugal’s clashes against Czech Republic and Spain.

“In the national team, I play with him and when I score, he is on the pitch,’ Fernandes added.

“To play with Cristiano as a No 10 is actually really good because players respect Cristiano so much that it creates more space, as the opponents are afraid of him taking the ball and scoring.

“I played the last four Premier League games without Cristiano starting and I scored only one goal. So it is not because of Cristiano. It is about momentum, timing. Sometimes it goes in a bad way and sometimes a better way.

“Obviously he can be really good to play together with, for someone who gives assists, as if you give him the right ball, he will score goals.”

Enjoyed the article? Share with others as well. Stay in the know, follow us on Twitter @punditgist.