Bruno Fernandes sends message as he stops ‘big game’ agenda dead

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Bruno Fernandes sent both a literal and figurative message on Sunday as he fired Manchester United into the fifth round of the FA Cup.

Fernandes was rested from the start against Liverpool, before coming off the bench with half an hour to go.

He stepped up by scoring the winner from a free-kick to net his 16th goal of the season. He posted a message on Instagram after the game celebrating United’s progression to the next stage.

The real message Fernandes sent was the one on the pitch, by scoring his winner.

A false narrative had popped up in the media after United’s draw at Anfield last week, in which he saw a late effort saved as the score finished 0-0.

Fernandes was accused of failing to deliver against the so-called ‘big six’, with it pointed out he had not scored against any of them this year.

This is ignoring of course that sides like Arsenal and Chelsea are 11th and 9th in the table, and actual top six teams like Leicester and Everton have conceded three goals from open play to Fernandes already this season.

There was no better way for Fernandes to answer the cheap, selective narrative attempting to diminish his incredible contribution for this club, than to score the winner to knock the current league champions out of the FA Cup.

With United sitting top of the league table too, largely thanks to Fernandes, this was a particularly sweet moment.

Since he joined, United, Bruno Fernandes has scored 28 goals in 51 games, an outrageous contribution for a midfielder. There are a lot more to come.

Fernandes has stopped the ‘big game’ narrative dead in it’s tracks by scoring a decisive winner in this fixture, and as he showed with his celebrations, it meant a lot to him.

This was a real message: Don’t ever doubt him or write him off.

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