Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has been dropped for Sunday's Premier League game against Bournemouth. Fernandes' place in the team has been debated since his explosive comments after Wednesday's Champions League humiliation by Como, when he blamed manager Michael Carrick for United's tactics in the 4-1 defeat and his failure to alter them. Carrick refused to say in his media conference on Friday whether Fernandes would be dropped.
That has now happened, with the Portugal midfielder left on the bench as United aim to end a seven-match run without a win in all competitions. Asked about the selection on Sky Sports, Carrick called Fernandes' omission "a football decision". "When you have options it's always a difficult decision.
We have to make the right one for today and the team to get that performance we want," he added. Harry Maguire takes over as captain, with Mason Mount handed a playmaking role along with Youri Tielemans. It is only the sixth time Fernandes has been left on the bench for a Premier League game.
That past two, at the end of the 2024-25 season, were to keep him fresh for important Europa League games. LIVE: Follow Man Utd v Bournemouth from Matheus Cunha is also on the bench after being replaced at half-time in Italy, along with Lisandro Martinez, who spoke out about the United hierarchy following the 2-0 defeat at Atletico Madrid this month. Martinez started at Leeds last week but was left out of the Como game because of injury.
"[He is] not quite [fit enough] - it was touch and go but it wasn't worth the risk." Carrick referred to the Como debacle in his programme notes for Sunday's game. "Manchester United is a truly great football club," he said. "Our standards and values have been set out over generations and are very important to me.
"As a group, we have a duty to represent you in a manner that is befitting of those principles. "Wednesday's performance was extremely disappointing in many ways. Today we have to show what we are all about.
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