Manchester United midfielder Bruno Fernandes put in one of his worst performances for the club in the 7-0 defeat to Liverpool on Sunday.
The Portuguese international wasn’t alone, with the rest of his teammates also failing to do themselves justice, but the 28-year-old was the captain and his antics on the pitch have been described as disgraceful and embarrassing in equal measure.
Fernandes did front up after the match to give a TV interview, but the responses from fans on Twitter were pretty unforgiving:
As a captain, he let the whole team down
— Dr Emir (@Fz_Emir) March 5, 2023
I’m so bored of his constant whinging to cover up his inadequate performances
— spencer (@spendulkar) March 5, 2023
He need to be dropt next game
— nomore (@fla8man) March 6, 2023
He’s been awful for weeks
— Clive Holland (@cliveholland) March 5, 2023
You were shocking. You’ve been for a very long time especially in big games
— Worla (@the_coc0) March 5, 2023
Big game Bruno strikes again
— Pike 🏴 (@OriginalPike) March 5, 2023
Looking at this man right now just angers me, an embarrassment to the sport today let alone the club
— Aaron Norris (@Nozweiser19) March 5, 2023
You should never wear captain’s arm band again, bro… too many complaints & lazy
— shin_knl (@shin_knl) March 6, 2023
Just quit behaving like a petulant child where your mates are. Be professional and try to play. Not my Captain
— Michael 🥂 (@MikeBlazie) March 5, 2023
It must be said that Fernandes’s demeanour and attitude on the pitch wasn’t befitting of a leader, and his rather petulant behaviour does raise questions about whether he should wear the captain’s armband.
There are plenty of options, such as Casemiro, Raphael Varane or David De Gea who could set a better example. Whether manager Erik ten Hag will take the captaincy away from him, though, it’s probably unlikely.