Manchester United got the answer to the Fernandes or Ronaldo penalty taker question at the weekend.
Unfortunately Fernandes’ miss makes the situation more of an issue going forward, with Ronaldo possibly taking over.
Fernandes showed how upset he was after the miss with a lengthy Instagram post after the game, in which he vowed to step up if asked again.
The United star has been inundated with support, with Ronaldo among the players leaving responses to him.
Donny van de Beek, Juan Mata and Diogo Dalot were among the players to comment too.
David de Gea, Anthony Martial, Harry Maguire and Jesse Lingard were among the players who also left heart emojis underneath Fernandes’ post.
It is clear Fernandes has the support of his teammates and his overall penalty record suggests it is well placed. He also created as many as 10 chances in the 1-0 defeat.
Hopefully we can go without the apologies for a while
It has become an aspect of modern football that players use social media to communicate with fans after games. Even when it goes badly.
From United’s perspective, it feels like we have seen enough already this season.
Cristiano Ronaldo has only been here a month and he has had to leave two solemn messages already after defeats to Young Boys and now Aston Villa.
Jesse Lingard expressed his heartfelt apologies after his error against Young Boys and got plenty of support from teammates and fans. He was able to bounce back quickly with a winner against West Ham.
Fernandes will be determined to do the same. The support speaks to the family atmospher and United dressing room, and it is good to see.
But it would be much better all round if the players get the job done on the pitch, and the post-game messages they are sending are celebrations rather than wallowing in their misery.
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