Is it an indictment on Manchester United that yet another player who left the club has been tearing it up elsewhere or is it just a case of standards?
Either way, it is doubtful that Fred will care much about that in this moment after putting in a memorable performance, his best one after leaving Manchester United.
The Brazilian now plies his trade for Turkish side Fenerbahce, coincidentally managed by another ex-Man United man in Jose Mourinho.
It seems like Mourinho finally has what he paid for at Old Trafford, but just at a different club, as Fred looks like a player transformed in Turkey.
Fred’s masterclass for Fenerbahce
Jose Mourinho hasn’t had the best of starts at Fenerbahce, already going out of the Champions League in qualifying rounds.
Even in the league, after two games, they had drawn one and won one, dropping two points in a notoriously difficult league to win.
All that doom and gloom was put firmly to rest when he took side to play against Rizespor in the third league game of the season.
Fenerbahce emerged as 5-0 winners and Fred, who had almost become a cult-like figure for trying hard but never scoring consistently from midfield at United, helped himself to a remarkable hattrick.
There were howitzers from a distance, a striker’s tap-in, and opportunistic shots in space as he ran from deep to get on the end of balls in attack.
In doing so, he matched his goalscoring total for the whole of last season, when he scored three goals in 25 league appearances.
Holistically, though, Fred has been far more of a contributor than he used to be at Old Trafford. Apart from this hattrick, the first of his club career, he finished last season with three goals and eight assists in 35 appearances, a respectable return.
To put it in context, Fred made 213 appearances for United and scored just 14 and assisted 18. He might match his United return for goals in 1/4th of the games at Fenerbahce.
Found his level or misused at United?
That is a question that always pops up whenever a player who leaves United succeeds elsewhere but in Fred’s case, it looks like a mix of both.
The Brazilian could never be faulted for his application and work-rate but his quality on the ball, especially in an intense Premier League, was always under the scanner.
His skill set was clearly valued, as Manuel Ugarte, the man about to arrive at United. Manuel Ugarte’s style of play has a similar terrier-like ethos of winning back possession as quickly as possible.
However, his slight frame and the team as it was constructed then exposed Fred’s weaknesses while never allowing his strengths to flourish.
Having said that, he looked like a player United would need to move on from and upgrade if they wanted to engineer a return to the very top of the game.
Ultimately, it is a move that suits all parties. Fred gets regular games in a league more suited to strengths, United might feel shortchanged about the transfer fee but it reflected their own valuation of the player, and finally, Jose Mourinho got what he paid for!
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