Bruno Fernandes, who has scored 111 goals in 335 appearances for Manchester United, is struggling to recapture the form that earned him PFA Player of the Year honors just seven weeks ago. The captain has three goals and one assist in six Premier League games this season, and United have collected just six points, their worst league start in 40 years.
Only seven weeks have passed since Fernandes stood in the Manchester Opera House and spoke of his pride at being named PFA Player of the Year for 2025-26. He had already won the Premier League and Football Writers’ versions of the award, recognizing his outstanding contribution to United’s unexpected third-place finish.
Fernandes scored nine goals and claimed 21 assists last season, breaking a Premier League record jointly held by Thierry Henry and Kevin de Bruyne. Over the final 11 games, he either scored or created 12 of United’s 21 goals. In the seven-game run that returned United to Europe’s elite club competition after a two-year absence, the 31-year-old was involved in nine of the 12 goals.
Statistically, it was remarkable. It recalled Eric Cantona’s 1995-96 title-winning campaign, when he scored in six successive games, five of them when United scored only once.
“It was a special season for me,” Fernandes told an appreciative audience. “I am very proud.
“But we don’t play tennis. We don’t play just for ourselves. We play for a team, we play for a club, we play for the fans. There is nothing more special than that.”
Those words carry particular weight now, because this season’s numbers are far less impressive.
A Difficult Start
Fernandes has played every minute of United’s six Premier League games. His three goals and one assist all came in the second match of the campaign, a win against Ipswich, which remains United’s only league victory so far. Those figures are still better than last season’s opening six games, when he scored twice and created nothing. However, he was playing in the deeper midfield role that Ruben Amorim preferred at that point.
This season, Fernandes is averaging 3.3 shots per game, his second-highest rate and behind only his 3.5 in 2020-21. Yet his average of 0.8 shots on target is joint-second lowest of his time at Old Trafford. His chance creation, at 2.5 per game, is the second lowest of his tenure and well down on the 4.0 he produced last season. He has created just one “big chance” so far, a lofted pass that sent Bryan Mbeumo clear of the Ipswich defense on August 30. His average last season was one per game.
Those numbers help explain why United have struggled. The question is whether Fernandes is a cause of the malaise or a symptom of it.
Fitness Questions
There is uncertainty over the Portugal playmaker’s fitness. Fernandes rarely misses games, but he was left out of the recent Nations League match with Norway. National team boss Jorge Jesus said the former Sporting man was “playing through pain.”
Fernandes was fit enough to return for the final two internationals of the break. Before that, he played the full 90 minutes in United’s 4-0 Champions League win against Azerbaijani champions Sabah FK.
United manager Michael Carrick does not see it as a problem as he prepares his side to face Atletico Madrid on Tuesday.
“He was carrying something but that happens a lot,” Carrick said. “Players play with issues.
“It’s not ideal but it is manageable. Bruno is able to play. That is the commitment he has got.
“He is pretty much over it, was really bright in training this morning and is looking forward to the game.”
Missing Partners
At the peak of Fernandes’ productivity late last season, Benjamin Sesko was a regular in the number nine role, and veteran Brazilian Casemiro anchored the midfield. Fernandes created four of Sesko’s nine league goals in 2026. He also set up four of the final five goals Casemiro scored for United from February 1 onward.
Both players are missed. Casemiro left for Inter Miami in the summer, and even his biggest admirers could not claim his departure alone explains United’s low running numbers. His positioning and game knowledge remain of a high standard. With Casemiro in midfield, Fernandes could take risks, confident that United would not be overrun on the break if he lost the ball.
Sesko’s fresh shin injury extends a lack of involvement that is being keenly felt, and there is no end date in sight.
The club ignored calls to add striking support in the summer and instead reinforced Carrick’s midfield. A plan to cover Sesko’s initial absence by using Mbeumo as a number nine was scrapped when Amad Diallo suffered an ankle injury just before the opening game at Hull. Matheus Cunha took the role, but he repeatedly dropped deep into the space Fernandes occupied, and the pair never found an effective way to deal with it.
For Fernandes, the system feels restrictive. He is not a player who lacks confidence, but his decision-making appears to be suffering. Against Tottenham at the weekend, it took him an incredible 23 minutes just to complete a pass.
Carrick Stands By His Captain
On Monday, Carrick said no one was “guaranteed” a place in his team, but he added enough caveats to suggest that leaving out his captain is not in his thinking. United must improve, and Fernandes must lead that change.
“He’s a top player, Bruno,” Carrick said.
“Sometimes things don’t quite go for you. Sometimes you have a spell of that.
“But he’s done some incredible things for this football club and he will do the same in the future, there’s no doubt about that.”