Fernandes and Carrick warmth thaws the Amorim cold for Man United
OLD TRAFFORD, MANCHESTER — For a playmaker of such abundant quality — his manager did not disagree with the suggestion that he is the best player in the Premier League right now — playing football can often look like anguish-inducing hard work for Bruno Fernandes.
The Portugal star berating referees and railing against everything that goes wrong has become a defining image of Manchester United’s struggles over recent years, unfairly so, given Fernandes has so often been the sole cause for optimism and lone example of elite quality.
Even combing through the Getty Images archive of Fernandes’ journey through Saturday’s assured 2-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur paints a picture of relentless toil. But the match-clinching image, one that secured a fourth win out of four under Michael Carrick and maintained United’s place in the top four, featured that lesser-spotted Fernandes smile after he dispatched Diogo Dalot’s cross in the 81st minute.
When Erik ten Hag and Ruben Amorim’s tenures circled the drain, Fernandes was akin to the soldier still fighting a war long after the situation has become hopeless. Now, he has an ally he knows and likes, someone to keep him out of the trenches and away from the muck and bullets.
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After the Tottenham game, Fernandes recounted his own observation from Carrick’s first caretaker stint in charge of United following Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s sacking in 2021. Having worked as one of Solskjaer’s assistants, Carrick oversaw wins versus Villarreal and Arsenal and a draw against Chelsea before embarking on his own managerial career at Middlesbrough.
“I think he still remembers what I told him the last time he was our manager for our last game. I was sure that Michael could be a great manager, and he’s just showing it,” Fernandes told TNT Sport. This is affection backed up by results but also grounded in friendship.
Are Michael Carrick and Bruno Fernandes friends?
“I’ve known Bruno for quite some time and know him really pretty well, seeing him the odd time since I’ve left the club, bumped into him at times… I’ve got a really good relationship with him,” Carrick said. “He’s a really intelligent footballer, he’s bright, he cares a lot for this club. In terms of that side of it, we all want the same thing.
“It’s obviously nice when players who you respect — as I do with Bruno, a lot — say good things about you. Ultimately, it’s about getting the best out of the team and that’s what we’re working on together. Time will tell. It’s not about judging how good or successful it is at this moment in time because nothing’s really happened yet. We hopefully have a lot more to do between now and the end of the season and see what happens after that.”
It’s very easy to draw a sharp contrast between the current feel-good factor inside Old Trafford and the desolate grey trudge of Amorim’s regime. Make no mistake, Amorim adored his fellow Sporting CP alumni too and remarked he needed “more Brunos”. But the prescriptive dogma of his 3-4-2-1 made life harder than it needed to be for too many players, Fernandes included.
Bruno Fernandes is the top rated player in the Premier League this season, according to @FotMob pic.twitter.com/wmA6OSeCXr
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) February 9, 2026
Under Carrick, United’s leading midfielder is still being asked to perform several roles. Against Spurs, he roved off the left flank at times and allowed Matheus Cunha to join the excellent Bryan Mbeumo in central areas. But it comes with a level of autonomy and player freedom that was never on the agenda for the more authoritarian Amorim.
Even in the prosaic setting of playing for an hour against a disciplined, 10-man Tottenham team, with patience an important virtue, Carrick’s freewheeling front four of Fernandes, Mbeumo, Cunha and Amad Diallo were a delight to watch.
Does Bruno Fernandes have more freedom under Michael Carrick?
“Within reason, as long as we carry out the roles properly,” the interim boss said, when discussing the extent to which his attacking quartet can play off the cuff.
“It’s not a total free-for-all; it’s a little bit more about where you end up. Bruno’s that type where he understands the different roles and plays them particularly well. Bryan’s done very similar. The same with Matheus as well, playing sometimes through the middle and sometimes off the left.
“It does give us the variety, I think. They’re all suited to different kinds of roles. Amad is probably more natural being wide, so that’s a little bit more predictable, if you like. The flexibility certainly helps us, so long as we look after the positions when we don’t have the ball.”
Tenaciousness off the ball has, of course, never been a problem for the tireless Fernandes. But it’s pleasing that the focus is once more firmly upon what he does better than most with the ball at his feet.
With 12 assists already this term, he has the Premier League’s single-season assist record of 20 in his sight. He has created 74 chances in 2025/26, with 23 of those coming in United’s past five league matches.
Sunday’s strike was his 200th goal involvement in 314 Red Devils appearances, reaching that landmark quicker than Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, David Beckham or Cristiano Ronaldo. And he’s done so much of that while sometimes appearing profoundly unhappy. Fernandes working for his mate Carrick could spell very bad news for the rest of the Premier League.
