´Exceptional´ Fernandes can thrive under Amorim, says former Man Utd coach Meulensteen

Ruben Amorim’s impending appointment as Manchester United boss will benefit skipper Bruno Fernandes, former Red Devils coach Rene Meulensteen believes.

United confirmed on Friday, four days after they sacked Ten Hag, that Amorim would be coming in as their new head coach.

The 39-year-old, who has won the Portuguese title twice in the space of three years, will join the Red Devils officially from November 11, after serving a notice period with Sporting CP.

United have agreed to pay Sporting around £9.2million (€11m) in compensation, with Amorim signing a contract that will keep him at Old Trafford until June 2027.

He will link up with compatriot Fernandes, who also swapped the Portuguese capital for Manchester back in January 2020.

The skipper has been directly involved in 151 goals since his debut, the most of any midfielder across Europe’s top five leagues during that time.

150 – Against Leicester City, Bruno Fernandes recorded his 150th and 151st goal involvements for Manchester United, becoming the seventh player overall to do so in Europe’s big five leagues in all competitions since his debut and first midfielder to do so. Maestro. pic.twitter.com/9YG6Ry19QN

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) October 31, 2024

And Meulensteen, who spent 12 years on the coaching staff at Old Trafford, thinks Fernandes will thrive under Amorim, and hopefully cut out some bad habits.

“It’s always important, but all managers expect certain things, have certain expectations from Bruno,” he told Stats Perform.

“I do think Bruno is an exceptional player. He’s been so important in so many goals, in terms of his assists and contributing goals himself.

“Although, there’s also another side that we’ve seen in Bruno – which you don’t like to see as a club captain – a little bit of petulant behaviour, like throwing the toys out of the pram if things are not going well.

“Obviously, they’re both Portuguese, so that helps them in terms of speaking in their native language.

“It’s going to be interesting. The way that he sets up his teams, he doesn’t play with out-and-out wingers. He plays far more with people in between the pockets, which [the likes of Bruno] are suited to.

“As soon as he steps over that line and steps through the door, we will see very, very quickly how he’s going to shape up the team.”