Manchester United are now eight competitive games into their first season under manager Erik ten Hag and while it hasn’t been plain sailing, they are on a run of four straight wins in the league and now have their first points on the board in this year’s Europa League campaign.
That being said, starring midfielder and fan favourite Bruno Fernandes has given more of an insight into the Dutchman’s coaching philosophy, alluding to ‘strict’ new rules and a change in atmosphere around the club.
Speaking in an exclusive with The Athletic‘s Adam Crafton, the 28-year-old playmaker revealed that, ‘first of all, he has an idea. He has a style’ and that the players have to stick to his overarching vision if they are looking to get into and stay in his team.
As he goes on to explain: “You have to follow [ten Hag’s] rules. He is strict on that. And I like that. He has brought discipline, which is something I think we missed in the past. Everyone must be on the same page.”
The ‘Portuguese Magnifico’, who was United’s player of the year in 2020/21 with an incredible 28 goals and 17 assists in his debut season, drew comparisons between the former Ajax coach’s principles and that of his closest rivals in Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp.
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“That is what Pep and Klopp have been doing for years”, says Fernandes, “because they have stability in the club and in the way they choose the transfer market and build the team, which is really important for them to get the rewards.”
United’s newly minted no. 8 recognised ten Hag’s plans to be pragmatic in the transfer window and purchase with purpose early, citing a press conference where he insisted that he did not want to bring players ‘just for the sake of it’ and that they must fit the blueprints of what he is trying to build.
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Not only is the suggestion that the club have been guilty of this in the past – to the tune of more than a billion pounds in the past decade, no less – but Bruno himself believes ‘it is something the club needs’ moving forward.
Addressing on his own dip in performances over the last two seasons, admitting he regularly fluctuates between, bad games, really good games’ and ‘normal games, the ever-creative outlet says there is still plenty of work to be done before the team is all singing from the same hymn sheet.
“We still have a margin to improve and he needs time to get the most out of us with his idea of playing. I believe we will get to the point with him where we are established as a team and everyone is on the same page.”
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Even on his off days, Fernandes still plays a vital role in this current Red Devils side and has regularly deputised for Harry Maguire, now sidelined from the squad since the arrival of Lisandro Martínez who has shored up the Man United defence alongside Raphaël Varane.
Fernandes also went on to discuss Ole Gunnar Solskjær, the man who brought him to the club, noting that he did ‘great things’ during his tenure and that the players must share some responsibility for his eventual sacking.
He even touched on short-lived interim coach and would-be consultant, Ralf Rangnick, who lasted just six months at Old Trafford before abandoning the project to become Austria’s national team coach.
Once again, Bruno suggested that his turbulent time at United was more because ‘confidence was low’ among the players and, therefore, they couldn’t put his ‘intensity and pressing’ into action, not to mention many of them being Solskjær signings who were brought in with ‘different ideas’ in mind.
The attacking midfielder summarised things by circling back to the somewhat unexpected win over Liverpool, arguing that ‘nobody was betting on Man United, only ourselves’. He believes that the team must now treat the rest of the season with the same mental attitude: being supportive, positive and ‘demanding of each other in a good way’.
Featured Image: Bruno Fernandes (via Instagram)
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Former Manchester United star Patrice Evra is set to make his MMA debut very soon
Danny Jones
In another somewhat left-field turn of events in the sporting world, ex-Manchester United star Patrice Evra is set to swap his boots for gloves as he prepares to make his MMA debut.
The retired Man United player and French international ended his playing days back in 2019 after a short one-year spell at West Ham, and has mostly worked as a pundit in recent years.
Evra, 43, stunned his millions of followers online and even more football and fight fans alike by announcing he would be trying his hand at combat sports earlier this week.
Hopping on social media to confirm the news, it’s fair to say he’s already relishing the challenge.
The former left-back made 379 appearances for the Red Devils, winning 14 trophies, but this will be his first in the European division of the Professional Fighters League (PFL), the second-biggest promotion in MMA after the UFC.
As far as we know, Evra has little to no background in fighting of any discipline, even if he was used to the more physical side of the game as a defender.
Writing via X on Friday, 25 April, the 2008 Champions League and ’09 Club World Cup winner, said: “I’m officially training for my first fight with PFL Europe. They will pick my opponent… They asked who I wanna face. I said: Luis Suárez.
“I’ll pay out of pocket. He can even bite me.”
Suárez, still playing at 38, was not only found guilty of at least three instances of biting other players but was famously charged with racially abusing Patrice Evra back in 2011, with the two sharing a strong feud ever since.
Now, since the Uruguayan striker is still playing professional football over in the MLS, alongside the one and only Lionel Messi at Inter Miami, we wouldn’t hold our breaths.
Nevertheless, it seems as though he will be fighting someone on 23 May, once an opponent is selected in the coming weeks.
Evra has been training with Cameroonian-French mixed martial artist and friend, Cédric Doumbé, a former kickboxing specialist and now an established fighter in the welterweight class.
Joking aside, although there are a lot of controversial moves that are legal in MMA, biting isn’t one of them – not that it ever stopped the former Liverpool forward in the past.
Speaking in an official press conference, Evra said: “I’ve performed on the world’s biggest stages, won every major trophy in football, but PFL Europe Paris will be an incredibly special night for me.
“I’ve been training alongside the best in the world for years, and they’ll also tell you I’m ready for this. I’m going to put on a show at the Accor Arena on 23 May, so come watch the spectacle.”
As out of the blue as it may seem, he obviously isn’t the only former athlete to have swapped one sport for another after calling time in their first career.
In fact, he’s not even the first United player to change lanes.
Manchester United goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce earns new contract after impressive season
Danny Jones
Manchester United Women’s goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce has signed a brand-new contract with the club following an impressive campaign in the Women’s Super League.
The American international, who earned her international debut for the USWNT earlier this month and has kept 13 clean sheets in 19 WSL games so far this season, hasn’t just been one of the most impressive Man United players this year but one of the best in female football full stop.
Faced with the not-so-insignificant challenge of having to replace former club icon and Lionesses number one, Mary Earps, who left the club last summer, Tullis-Joyce has more than risen to the occasion and quickly become a fan favourite.
Having played an integral role in another impressive domestic display from the Reds, including a third consecutive FA Cup final for Marc Skinner’s side, securing her signature for a few more years was pretty much a no-brainer.
Penning a new three-year contract with United Women, this new deal sees the number 91 extend her stay at Leigh Sports Village until 2028.
With just nine goals conceded all season, fans will be hoping that’s until 2028 at the very least.
Speaking via the official club announcement, Phallon said: “I am really grateful to have this opportunity to continue the exciting journey we are on. All of us in the team have ever-growing dreams of what we can achieve together.
“We want to keep making history and I am so proud to keep wearing the Manchester United badge.”
The 28-year-old stats speak for themselves.
USWNT goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce is having an impressive season with Man United 😤🧱
It was only back in February that manager Skinner, who also recently extended his stay at the club, proclaimed her as “one of the world’s best”; meanwhile, the club’s interim head of women’s football, Matt Johnson, described her a “exceptional” both on and off the pitch.
He went on to add that “This [new deal] shows the ambition of the club that we can retain one of the best goalkeepers in the world here at Manchester United.”
With a healthy catalogue of highly athletic shot-stopping like this to her name and making a half century of saves in goal for MUWFC, it’s no surprise, really:
With other important players such as Maya Le Tissier, Millie Turner and Jayde Riviere having also signed new deals until 2028, Man United Women are looking to rebuild a strong core following some big departures in the last couple of years.
The men’s team, on the other hand, looks to be facing numerous obstacles.
As mentioned, the Women’s FA Cup final against an ever-dominant Chelsea side is taking place next month (18 May, 1:30pm), and a fantastic performance from Phallon Tullis-Joyce will no doubt be key in deciding who goes home with the trophy.
Danny Jones -
20th September 2022 
