It has been a while since there was genuine optimism around Old Trafford, but with the signing of Bruno Fernandes in January, the doom and gloom days at Man United seem to have vanished – and the Portuguese playmaker is the major reason for that.
Fernandes’ magical style of play has inspired his colleagues at Old Trafford to deliver brilliantly on the pitch and has also changed the mentality of the team even off the pitch. Thus the Red Devils’ late charge for a top four place.
From his first training session at Carrington, his team-mates discovered how adventurous Fernandes is in his play. He wants the ball in any situation, no matter how tight the space, he wants to get the ball forward.
However, there’s another player in the blue side of Manchester, Kevin De Bruyne, who seemingly is an upgrade on United’s Bruno Fernandes.
In the last two years or more, Kevin De Bruyne has been able to keep up his scintillating momentum except for the 2017/18 season City won the league and the Belgian midfield dynamo was disturbed by injury.
Nonetheless, KDB is the best midfielder in the Premier League.
Therefore, how does Bruno Fernandes compare to the best Midfielder in the Premier League in the person of Kevin De Bruyne?
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These three similarities would make everything clear – and also, should give United fans the hope for a better future.
Chances Creation
Fernandes has created 11 chances for team-mates (including assists), the same number as Kevin De Bruyne, Jack Grealish, Ondrej Duda and Andrew Robertson. Only three players have recorded more since his debut: João Moutinho (12), Dwight McNeil (13) and James Maddison (16). He also boasts 55.92% passes success rate per match which demonstrates his passing intelligence, a trait similar to that of De Bruyne’s.
The 25-year old has recorded a shot rate of 3.8 per game with De Bruyne recording a shot rate of 1.8 per game.
All-Round Play
Fernandes has managed 42 shots in the Premier League this season, with 17 of those on target. Again, considering that De Bruyne has made more appearances, the Portuguese’s numbers are strong, at least for a player that joined halfway into the season.
In the 2019/20 Premier League season so far, De Bruyne has played 31 matches (plus 3 as a sub), he’s registered 29 shots on target from 76 attempts in the league this term, handing the Belgian a shooting accuracy of 41.8% while Fernandes’s is 50%.
Ability To Play As A Number 10 or Number 8
De Bruyne’s early days at Manchester city saw him played out wide on the left until Pep’s arrival saw the Belgian international drafting into a number 8 or 10 position.
Fernandes equally is adapted to playing the number 8 position. During his Sporting days, he was saddled with the task of setting up the play right from midfield which he produced eight goals and seven assists in the first half of the season.
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De Bruyne is Man City’s creative hub and he’s generally regarded as the finest player in the Premier League. In Fernandes, United have got themselves a similar player to De Bruyne.
An eye for Goal
Fernandes has notched seven goals and seven assists in 13 Premier League appearances for United since he joined as compared to De Bruyne’s 11 goals and 19 assists this season.
The Portuguese scored over 50 goals for Sporting which definitely explains how prolific he can be in front of goal, and should not be scared of replicating the same form for his new club.
Nice One