Alan Pardew labels Manchester United captain a ‘strange player’

Former Premier League manager Alan Pardew has given his verdict on Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes.

Pardew notes that Fernandes, who is renowned for creating chances on the pitch, has not been scoring enough goals for United this season.

The Portugal international has created a whopping 72 chances in the Premier League this season, but has scored just three goals on top of five assists in 24 league matches.

Last season he scored eight goals and recorded as many assists in the Premier League.

Speaking on talkSPORT, Pardew described the Portuguese Magnifico as a strange player: “He is a strange player, isn’t he? Because he has this incredible stat – he creates more chances than anybody else in the Premier League apparently, according to my stat man here, and yet, the end product this year hasn’t really been there.”

In terms of performances, Fernandes is not enjoying the best season and a lot of his displays have been frustrating. That is what you get with a player like Fernandes when things aren’t going to plan.

For instance, Fernandes performed poorly last time out against Luton Town at Kenilworth Road. He was wasteful in possession and offered very little in the final third.

Perhaps with Mason Mount returning from injury we might see a rise in competition for players. It might be no harm to rest Fernandes for one or two weeks. That might rejuvenate him for the remainder of the season.

United are now back in the race for a top four finish and that means we could do with some goals from Fernandes again.

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