In the early part of the season, Scott McTominay was Manchester United’s only midfielder offering any kind of spark.
But now Fred and Nemanja Matic have dramatically improved and Bruno Fernandes has galvanised the whole club.
Speaking ahead of the Europa League clash against LASK, McTominay explained what it’s like playing alongside the Portuguese international.
Demanding Fernandes
As per the club’s official website, McTominay said: “Bruno, he’s come in and he’s a born winner. You see that in training. He’s willing to receive the ball in any situation and play the killer pass, which is what we need as a team.
“We need that creativity, that spark and he’s had an amazing start. I can’t give him enough credit for the way he has started his career here.
“For me, he’s very demanding because he’s a number 10 who wants the ball so you have to give him the ball and if you don’t then you can be in a little bit of trouble! But no, he’s been a breath of fresh air.
“He’s come in and interacted with the group perfectly. He’s got a personality and footballers who play for Manchester United need to have that personality on the pitch and he has that in abundance.”
Battle on for player of the season?
Before McTominay got injured around Christmas, he was the stand-out contender to be United’s player of the season.
In his absence, Bruno joined the club and the way he’s galvanised the entire place means he should be in contention too.
The fact that Fernandes has only been at the club for half the season may count against him in the final reckoning.
But that’s what Solskjaer needs, competition between outstanding players, not a foregone conclusion or an underwhelming season’s worth of performances to choose from.
McTominay and Fernandes both have that burning desire to give their all for the shirt and that’s something United have sorely lacked in recent seasons.
As long as McTominay keeps giving Bruno the ball, the future looks bright for United.
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