Bruno Fernandes is the first Manchester United player to win the PFA Player of the Year award since Wayne Rooney 16 years ago. When he first signed from Sporting CP in 2020, there was a clause in his original contract stating that the Old Trafford club would pay another £4.2m (€5m, $5.5m) should Fernandes be voted for the award by his fellow professionals and win, though he’s been such a success since that he’s had new improved contracts and United will be spared paying another few million for a player who cost £47million, plus up to £21million in add-ons, most of which have been met.In May, Fernandes also matched Rooney’s crowning in 2010 as the Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year. Again, no United player had won it since.
United players won the PFA award for three successive years prior to Rooney: Cristiano Ronaldo twice and Ryan Giggs once. The lack of individual awards since usually reflects no team success, so Fernandes had to be especially outstanding last term given United came third in the league, didn’t play European football and exited both domestic cup competitions at the first hurdle.“It’s an honour but I’m sure Bruno would rather win the Premier League title with his team than an individual award,” Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the manager who brought him to Old Trafford, tells The Athletic. “Bruno was a great player, great person and I thoroughly enjoyed managing him.”Fernandes was indeed special and had much to do with that third-place finish. He was United’s best performer, captain and all-round hero, capable of producing moments of magic, of unlocking defences. He hit headlines by breaking the Premier League’s assist record with his 21st of the season in the final league game at Brighton in May. His first of those 21 didn’t come until the eighth game at Liverpool.Casemiro celebrates with Fernandes last season (Photo: Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images)“I think one of the factors why Bruno has got so many assists is that the players this year are helping him,” Casemiro told me a week before. “For me, this is a big factor because Bruno is playing the same as always. It is true that Bruno’s numbers are very high, but for me Bruno is not doing anything different from what he did in the last four years here.“The players are helping. It’s also important to distribute the pressure to everyone”.
