Considering his usual lofty standards, it’s not exactly been the most fruitful start to the season for Bruno Fernandes, the Manchester United skipper among many to underwhelm in recent weeks.
The Portuguese genius has still chalked up four goals in all competitions thus far, although the win over Ipswich Town aside, he’s proven rather anonymous in Premier League action.
Having been central to everything good about Michael Carrick‘s team last term, amid his record-breaking haul of assists, the 31-year-old just hasn’t quite clicked into gear as yet.
Is this a mere World Cup hangover, or has Fernandes lost his crown as Carrick’s best or most influential player at Old Trafford?
Why Fernandes’ start to the season is a concern for Man Utd
For a man who is almost an everpresent for club and country, a dip in form is perhaps to be expected, particularly after his involvement for Portugal over the summer.
After Euro 2024, for instance, it took until November, and the interim appointment of Ruud van Nistelrooy, for the playmaker to score his first Premier League goal in the following campaign.
Carrick won’t want to endure a repeat of Erik ten Hag’s early-season dismissal, however, with the Englishman needing his main man to step up to the plate on a more consistent basis.
The performance away at Hull City could be excused by a lack of pre-season, although Fernandes’ display in the derby was well below his usual standards, his only key pass coming in stoppage time as he picked out Bryan Mbeumo.
The captain struck the crossbar against Everton, but he actually only registered 65 touches as a sign of his limited involvement, below his 75.3 average across 2025/26.
As for the recent trip to Fulham, Fernandes again struck the post yet was rather anonymous otherwise, losing the ball on 21 occasions, albeit while registering four key passes.
There have been bright moments and key interventions, having also come off the bench to tee up Marcus Rashford for a late chance against Brighton and Hove Albion, yet a sustained, stellar performance from Fernandes has yet to be seen in 2026/27.
Indeed, Carrick’s standout player thus far lies elsewhere in the squad.
Man Utd’s most valuable player has now overtaken Fernandes
From the highs of earlier this year under Carrick, so many key figures have endured a drop in performance levels in the early weeks of the new campaign.
The previously dependable Senne Lammens has looked a little creaky of late, while Lisandro Martinez has been at the scene of the crime too often, making key errors against both Ipswich and Fulham.
In attack too, Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo haven’t found their groove in front of goal, the pair scoring only three league goals between them so far, following Cunha’s deflected equaliser last time out.
It’s been a real contrast to the backend of last term, although one man who has maintained his momentum is Kobbie Mainoo, the 21-year-old having been a shining light in central midfield.
What a fighter this young man is, overcoming repeated setbacks to continually force his way onto centre stage at Old Trafford.
A first Premier League start was notably delayed by a pre-season injury in 2023. He effectively saw 14 months of his career written off by Ruben Amorim. It was a similar story this summer, as he failed to earn a single minute of game time under Thomas Tuchel.
Time and again, the Stockport native – who has pulled out of the latest England squad with injury – has picked himself up, dusted himself down and shown his class on the Old Trafford turf.
There’s tiresome debate over quite what his level actually is, but few can argue that at a time when Premier League midfielders are fetching north of £100m, including the likes of Elliot Anderson, Mainoo would be in that ballpark too.
Indeed, having been eased in against Hull, Mainoo has barely put a foot wrong since, memorably producing an almost faultless performance in the Champions League against Sabah.
Even in the derby, it was the youngster who tried to spark United into life after the break, completing all three of his attempted dribbles on the day, while providing three key passes.
He does appear to have added another string to his bow in terms of creativity, memorably threading the ball into Cunha’s path to win the penalty against Ipswich, while earlier picking out Youri Tielemans with a zipped pass into the penalty area.
It’s not as if he’s just shining in comparison to his teammates either, having ranked first in the division in terms of possession won this season (40), while also boasting the highest pass accuracy of any midfielder to have attempted 200 or more passes (93.93%).
As Squawka also noted, he has the best dribble success rate for any player to complete ten or more take-ons this season (76.92%), showing the elite level that the Carrington graduate is operating at.
|
Possessions Won – 26/27 |
|
|---|---|
|
Player |
Possessions Won |
|
Mainoo |
40 |
|
Hall |
38 |
|
Scott |
36 |
|
Xhaka |
33 |
|
Mykolenko |
30 |
|
Williams |
28 |
|
Khalaili |
26 |
|
Ndiaye |
26 |
|
Miley |
26 |
|
Tavernier |
26 |
That can also be seen in the fact that, as per CIES Football Observatory, he’s now believed to be the most valuable player at the club, his maximum value currently in the region of €82m (£70m).
Three midfielders have been signed by INEOS this summer, but Mainoo remains the cream of the crop, arguably one of the most in-form players in the Premier League right now in general.
2025/26 might have belonged to Fernandes, but this could be the year when Mainoo truly emerges as United’s talisman. Perhaps the Englishman will be the man to build this team around before too long.
