After another disastrous performance leading to defeat in the Europa League final to Spurs, all the questions that we didn't want to be asked should we have lost, are being asked. One of them is the future of skipper Bruno Fernandes.
Sky Sports came out with the report that "Saudi club Al Hilal are interested in signing Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes 🚨" and this isn't the first time the SPL club have been linked with the Portuguese. Al-Hilal put up a MASSIVE offer of £62.5m-a-year wage for the 31 year old and a potential whopping £100m offer for the MUFC captain.
It's clear that the Saudi side want the magnifico at Al-Hilal.
Due to the humungous offer, it is a deal that turned heads not least the captain himself it would seem.
Since these first links came out earlier this month, people have noticed that Fernandes' head wasn't as in the game as it should be when United played the second leg of the semifinal against Athletic Club followed by the losses to West Ham and Chelsea.
Even in the loss to Spurs, Bruno dropped a clanger of a performance, one that was nowhere near what was required of a captain of Manchester United.
This caused many to think that perhaps it would be best if the club did sell the midfielder and welcome that reported £100m.
If ever there was a divisive player at our club, it would be Bruno Fernandes. He is either loved or hated, either the greatest midfielder in PL history or absolutely terrible and not fit enough to wear the armband.
This is where I have a problem with him and far too many of our players. When we as a fan base go from one extreme to another in terms of whether a player is good enough or not, then they truly aren't good enough. It cannot be this way.
I have been a fan of Bruno's pretty much since he joined the club but always there was that part of me that felt he wasn't as good as people make him out to be. This doesn't mean he's complete shite and shouldn't be at the club but he's certainly not in the legend status even more so when you've seen what he's achieved, or not, which isn't necessarily his fault as it is a team and club responsibility more than any individual when it comes to winning trophies.
United are a better team with him in it and he's arguably the best captain available even if he is not the best captain.
And this is another problem I've had with him: leadership.
I just don't see enough of it especially in the moments where you need your leaders more than most, like a European final and match where there is much riding on it.
Against Spurs, Bruno was amongst one of the worst players on the field with many questioning how a player of his quality, experience and leadership, can perform so poorly and out of sorts in a game of that magnitude.
This led to many to think that perhaps that Saudi offer was still on his mind.
I say maybe this was still on his mind but also that Bruno can be this inconsistent. We know how well he can play as he has shown it many times but he also has this uncanny ability to be one of the worst players on the pitch.
This is okay if it happens every once in a while as no one can perform at 8 or 9/10 every game but he has too many of these awful performances. Pair this with questionable leadership and it doesn't make for a great player.
One cannot deny his love for United and attitude whenever he steps onto the pitch (many could actually learn from him in this), and we know that when it comes to goal contributions (184 goals and assists in 289 matches) there are few who are better which indicates that he isn't a bad player.
On top of it all, the skipper is always available and a player you can call upon to player every couple of days. That is a skill in itself.
But for a player with the quality he has, you expect more than just numbers and the odd great game. Bruno is far too inconsistent for me and that is one of the reasons why I would do this deal. However, we have to get the right players with that money, which isn't something we do. If we're going to waste it on poor deals/players, then we may as well keep Bruno.
To have a player who is the captain but not a great leader, a great goal contributer but too inconsistent, earns £300k-a-week and is 31, getting £100m for that is a damn good deal and one I don't think the club can refuse.
Losing to Spurs meant many things weren't happening least of all no £100m from being in the Champions League. That was more of an aim than winning the Europa League itself as the club is in quite the finincial pickle.
Selling Bruno and removing that wage would bring in this £100m that you miss out on from not qualifying for the CL.
Yes it is getting rid of a valuable asset in order to save a sinking ship but as my mother told me, are some of these 'valuable assets' actually that good?
Would Bruno be massively missed? There would be an obvious hole in the side which could be a problem in the early days, but if that money were to be spent wisely, perhaps United bring in a couple of good players that would cause us to not miss Bruno as much. Having two or three top players could also mean less relaibility on one player.
As Bruno is also always available and always in the team, it's rare that we've seen a United side without him for a decent period. When he has missed the odd game, we can see that we need him. However, if he were to be unavailble for five or six games, maybe the team will learn to play without him and could be even better?
Of course we'll never know unless he leaves because he will continue to be in the side yet it would be interesting to know how we function without a player we've become so dependable upon.
His comments post the final defeat could be an indication of what the future holds for Fernandes. The United skipper said this regarding his future:
“I will be here until the club says to me that it’s time to go”.
“If the club thinks it’s time to part ways because they want to do some cash in or whatever, it’s what it is… and football sometimes is like this”.
Even he might be resigning to the fact that his time at the club may be up, one way or the other.
He is such a divisive player. Some games I absolutely adore him. He does some incredible things on the pitch whether that's playing out of position, running harder than anyone else, providing great assists or scoring massive goals. He does things that you don't get from others.
At other times, he can frustrate the life out of me because he shoots from stupid places, tries to be too extravagent unnecessarily, is il-disciplined or can drop shit performances at a time when we need him most.
You could argue that without him maybe we would've been relegated. You could argue that he is the best player we've had post-Sir Alex Ferguson. Both of those statements I wouldn't actually disagree with.
But is he worth keeping when he's as inconsistent as he is and there's an offer that could be a potential lifeline for the club, at least for the near future?
I know that Ruben Amorim is a fan of his fellow Portuguese and would probably want him to remain but if there's a chance that he gets this £120m (or whatever the actual offer could be), would he not think that he could do something with that money? Something that could help propel this team to the next level?
Personally, I don't think the club will sell him. I think there are others such as potentially Garnacho, Mainoo, Rashford, Antony and others that might bring in a decent price meaning that the skipper won't need to be sold.
Whatever the case is though, it's clear that there is to be movement at Old Trafford this transfer window and nobody is safe.
Would you sell Bruno or do you think he's more valuable to this squad at least for the moment?
Bruno Fernandes' future at Man Utd is uncertain with Al-Hilal returning for MUFC captain | Bruno Fernandes: Image via Manchester United official X (@ManUtd)