Bruno Fernandes went viral on social media at the weekend after Manchester United’s loss to Fulham.
The Cottagers appeared to dig out the Portuguese midfielder for his theatrical dive. Erik Ten Haag has dismissed criticism of his skipper as “pathetic.”
After their historic win at Old Trafford last weekend, Fulham took to their official Tik Tok account to share a video of Bruno Fernandes, accusing him of play-acting in a provocative post.
Ten Haag was enraged and hit out at criticism, suggesting that Fernandes is a player who goes to ground too easily to influence decisions.
He said in an interview: “I see social media criticising him. It is pathetic.”
“It is absolutely not right that a club makes such a statement because it is totally out of order and wrong, and they should apologise for this.”
What Does The Video Featuring Bruno Fernandes Against Fulham Show?
The video posted shows Fernandes going to the ground after a challenge from Sasa Lukic (Fulham). After the United man takes a shot, he dramatically falls to the ground, gesturing for a free-kick about 25 yards from Fulham’s goal.
With no favourable decision, he swiftly gets up, requesting the ball, creating the impression of a sudden recovery from the apparent challenge.
🚨🚨| This is the TikTok video that Fulham published on their official TikTok account, mocking Bruno Fernandes. 😬pic.twitter.com/3cshBreV8K
— CentreGoals. (@centregoals) February 29, 2024
They captioned the video “So glad he’s okay” with an eye-rolling emoji and some comical music in the background. The post has been liked over 58,000 times.
Although Ten Haag stated that his Portuguese midfielder suffered a “serious injury” as a result of the incident against Fulham, but he was determined to play through the pain.
He explained that Fernandes has a very high pain threshold and that last year he did something similar against Spurs. Which shows his “leadership.”
Following Man United’s 1-0 win against Nottingham Forest last night, the Red Devil’s boss believes that Fernandes was targeted.
He feels the Forest players were going for him on Wednesday night, even off the ball, and felt that was a result of the social media video and subsequent criticism.
The good news for Ten Haag is that Fernandes will be fit for Sunday’s derby with Manchester City at the Etihad.
Bruno Fernandes Controversies
This isn’t the first time the United midfielder has come under scrutiny for his play-acting and attitude on the pitch.
Last March, Gary Neville strongly criticised Fernandes and labelled him “embarrassing” when he pretended to be injured when facing a mild challenge from Konate (Liverpool).
The incident showed, Fernandes went down holding his face despite little to no contact from the Liverpool defender.
Bruno Fernandes …. wondering if that facial injury will heal in time for the next @premierleague game #horribleinjury – watch the video at your own risk… pic.twitter.com/msM0Jjpajp
— John-Paul O'Driscoll (@JohnPaul_OD) March 5, 2023
Neville isn’t the only United legend to take aim at Fernandes, as Roy Keane has also been highly judgemental of the midfielder.
Keane, the ex-Manchester United captain, was extremely critical of Fernandes’ conduct during the Manchester derby defeat last year.
He stated: “Today, having watched him again, I would take the captaincy off him 100 per cent,”
“”He is a talented player, no doubt about it. But what I saw today – we’ve discussed many times before—was last season at Liverpool—his whinging, his moaning, and throwing his arms up in the air constantly.”
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