Micah Richards singles out ‘excellent’ Man Utd star’s performance vs Man City, only one other player came close

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Micah Richards has lavished major praise on two Manchester United stars after the Community Shield defeat to Manchester City at Wembley on Saturday.

Erik ten Hag’s men fell short of capturing the Community Shield, despite leading Manchester City late in the second half of the contest.

Alejandro Garnacho came off the bench and replaced Amad Diallo before the Manchester United winger broke the deadlock at Wembley in the 82nd minute.

However, Premier League champions City rallied back after Bernardo Silva cancelled out Alejandro Garnacho’s second-half opener with a crucial equaliser.

Pep Guardiola’s men clinched the Community Shield with a 7-6 win on penalties, despite Bernardo Silva missing the opening penalty for City.

Both Jadon Sancho and Jonny Evans failed to convert from the spot-kick for United during the shootout defeat to City.

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Richards praises two Man Utd stars

Micah Richards waxed lyrical about the “excellent” performance of Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes in the Community Shield.

Bruno Fernandes missed the pre-season for Erik ten Hag’s United side after representing Portugal at Euro 2024 in Germany this summer.

However, the 29-year-old Portugal midfielder was a largely influential figure on the pitch and saw his stunning strike against Manchester City chalked off for offside.

Richards hailed the superb performance from Fernandes and claimed Casemiro only rivalled the United star in “terms of his passing and movement.”

Casemiro, who was met with heavy criticism for his form at Old Trafford last season, was widely praised for his display in the Community Shield clash at Wembley.

“Now you’ve got players like Amad Diallo pushing for a start. [Alejandro] Garnacho comes off the bench and makes an impact,” Richards said on The Rest Is Football.

“[Marcus] Rashford, although he should be taking his chances, is still getting chances.

“I thought Bruno Fernandes was excellent. Casemiro, too, in terms of his passing and movement.

“They are playing a team [City] that love to play the ball and make you look stupid and that wasn’t the case, so there’s definitely positives to take from Man United’s performance.”

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Ten Hag on new Man Utd era

United will kick off their 2024-25 Premier League season on Friday when they host Fulham at Old Trafford.

Despite the Community Shield defeat, a buoyant Ten Hag insisted that United could “take positives” from the City match into the new season.

“We are going in the new season,” he said, as per Manchester United’s official website.

“I am very pleased with the new structure. We are working very good together.

“The team was always good but I think we can make steps forwards. I think from pre-season, and also today, we can take positives but I think if we step up and are more clinical in both boxes, then we can be a successful team.”