Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has recalled the “emotional” and “funny” experience of meeting Portugal teammate Cristiano Ronaldo for the first time.
Bruno Fernandes, much like Cristiano Ronaldo, made a name for himself at Sporting CP before Manchester United made a stunning swoop for the midfielder in 2020.
The 30-year-old United skipper has had a sensational impact since his arrival at Old Trafford, with Fernandes scoring 83 times and picking up 73 assists in 250 matches.
Fernandes ascended to the United captaincy after Harry Maguire was stripped of the armband and Erik ten Hag promoted the Portugal star to the role in 2023.
The midfielder played alongside Ronaldo for the Portugal national team before sharing the pitch with the United legend after his return to Old Trafford in 2021.
Fernandes on meeting Ronaldo for first time
Portugal international Bruno Fernandes has linked up with Cristiano Ronaldo again for national team duty during the November international break.
Roberto Martinez’s men resume their Nations League campaign against Poland on Friday evening in Porto before travelling away to face Croatia on 18th November.
Portugal are currently top of the League A Group 1 table and Roberto Martinez’s side are undefeated in their four-match run, with the country winning three matches.
Speaking on Ronaldo’s YouTube channel, Fernandes recalled his first experience with his former United teammate after he was called up for the Portugal national team.
He admitted that he was stunned when Ronaldo knew his name and his exploits at Sporting CP, with Fernandes telling his friends and family about the experience.
“It’s funny, but also emotional,” Fernandes said.
“When I first arrived here, I was surrounded by great players that I admired and I was quite shy.
“I didn’t want to talk to anyone. I would shake hands with my head down and Cristiano wasn’t there when I arrived, because I arrived very early and when he arrived he started talking to me, saying my name… and he said to me, ‘I’ve seen your games, you’ve been scoring goals, playing very well for Sporting’ and I remember going back to the room to talk to my friends and family…
“‘He’s been watching my games; how does he know my name?’ Because it was the first time I was arriving at the national team and you admire these players and you always think that they don’t know who you are.”
Bernardo Silva on crossing paths with Ronaldo
Manchester City star Bernardo Silva featured in the video and revealed one of his first experiences with Ronaldo while on international duty with Portugal.
“Of course, I have a lot of memories with him, we played together 10 years ago because that was when I started with the national team,” he added.
“I think one of the first times I arrived at the training camp, I didn’t know where to sit and some of the older players said, ‘You can sit there, there’s a free space,’ but that was Cristiano’s place on the bus and when he arrived he started laughing and said, ‘You can sit here with me,’ but I was in his place, I was just a kid of 20.
“The other guys tricked me and put me in Cristiano’s place, so that was actually funny.”
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