There is no getting away from it; this is Manchester United‘s worst start to a season in 40 years.
It’s a stat that feels like it gets repeated every year, but what’s unravelled this term at Old Trafford is perplexing. While some will say they saw it coming, using Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as a reference point, others will be surprised.
After all, this is a team that had been exceptional under Michael Carrick in the back end of last term. From week 20 of the season to week 38, no team picked up more points.
So, where’s it all gone wrong? Well, the manager is failing to get a tune out of one of their modern greats: Bruno Fernandes.
How Bruno Fernandes fared vs Leeds
Fernandes is one of the best players in the Premier League when he’s on form. The fact he won the PFA Player of the Year award last season tells you all you need to know.
Yet, this term has been a challenge. He scored a brilliant hat-trick at home to Ipswich in the opening weeks of the season but that is about as good as it has got for the Portuguese in 2026/27.
A goalless game against Leeds on Sunday afternoon means he has now gone six games without finding the net. What hasn’t worked is a change in position.
Against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League last week, Carrick selected Fernandes to play on the right. At Elland Road, he played off the left.
|
Fernandes vs Leeds |
|
|---|---|
|
Minutes played |
90 |
|
Touches |
51 |
|
Accurate passes |
23/37 (62%) |
|
Chances created |
1 |
|
Shots |
3 |
|
Shots on target |
1 |
|
Successful dribbles |
0 |
|
Tackles |
1 |
|
Interceptions |
1 |
|
Ball recoveries |
4 |
|
Duels won |
1/6 |
Well, given the results and the performance levels of Fernandes, that decision has not been vindicated.
At the weekend, the 32-year-old had the joint-most shots in the game with three but failed to complete a dribble, created just one chance and only won one of his six duels. It was another poor performance and one that has prompted deeper concerns about the skipper.
Why Fernandes is becoming a wider problem
Fernandes is one of the best signings in Manchester United history. He has scored 107 goals and assisted 108. Few at Old Trafford have dazzled as much as he has, even if some of the most iconic players the game has ever seen have worn the famous United red.
Last term was a special one. He registered 21 assists in the league, beating a seasonal record of 20 held by Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne.
As a result, it rather defies belief that the attacking midfielder has just one assist to show for his efforts from ten games this term.
What’s going wrong? Well, it almost looks like he’s trying a bit too hard. He knows he’s the best player on the team and he knows everything must come through him. It’s a lot of pressure to play with.
Perhaps it’s a case of knowing his race is run. Fernandes has rejected lucrative offers to leave United in the past. Saudi Arabia came calling but he wanted to stay in England; he wanted to stay in Manchester specifically.
However, at the age of 32, you sense he potentially has one more move in him. At the moment, he likely shares Lisandro Martinez viewpoint. He has given blood, sweat and tears to the project and received very little back.
At the very least, the hierarchy could give him a functioning attack to work alongside.
Why Fernandes should be annoyed with Man United’s attack
The recruitment has been a horror story for a while now.
Thankfully, the days of Jadon Sancho, Antony and Rasmus Hojlund are long gone now but problems still linger in the final third. Really, it’s rather remarkable that Fernandes made it to 21 assists last season.
In truth, the forward line at Old Trafford has improved. The work done in the summer of 2025 to lure Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko to the club has to be admired. In spells, all three have looked like good signings.
Yet, there are still scars from days gone by, particularly Joshua Zirkzee. He is one of a number of distinctly abject additions to United’s forward line since Fernandes signed. In truth, it’s something of a footballing crime that he’s not had better options ahead of him. He has every right to be frustrated with the recruitment in recent years.
There are some names with proven pedigree there. See the great Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani.
Unfortunately, however, Zirkzee is cut more from the Hojlund or Wout Weghorst cloth. A tall striker, he’s never really made the grade in Manchester and it is only going from bad to worse for him.
After the arrival of Sesko just over a year ago, he was bumped down the pecking order and played just 26 times in 2025/26, scoring two goals. He only started on five occasions in the Premier League.
Sadly for Zirkzee, he now looks to be even further down the pecking order after Mbeumo’s performance on Sunday afternoon.
The Netherlands international was an unused sub with Mbeumo preferred as the leading striker and he took his chance brilliantly, sliding in to give United the lead.
While he is not the complete centre forward, he’s certainly a menace in the final third and deserves to be the focal point of the attack with Sesko out injured.
That does, however, spell bad news for Zirkzee. It looked like the 25-year-old may depart over the summer but he stayed at Old Trafford and is set to endure a lack of game time as a result.
Signed for over £36m, it is safe to say he has been a big waste of money, netting just nine times in 81 appearances. It says it all that his conversion rate of 8% last season was nearly as bad as Weghorst’s conversion rate of 6% when he was at United.
Given the price tag and the fact his wages have taken the cost of this deal to £57m, he’s a much larger problem than what’s happening with either Fernandes or even Martinez right now.
It was worrying that they could not shift him over the summer. Will they have better luck over the winter? You’d be surprised.
