Really interesting deep dive into the mind of our captain. I translated it and only put the good parts so hopefully should be alright to post.
Manchester United and National Team midfielder talks about his expectations for Euro-2024, his club and the criticisms made of him, Sporting and also gives a true master class on what a 'playmaker' should be
- Talking now about what this Selection is with Roberto Martínez, what was the first thing you thought of when the selector told you that he was going to be the first organizer, a kind of 8?
- Not at all, because the first time we played we had a three-man defense, with two midfielders and then we had two wingers inside, two 10s basically, and two wingers and a striker. I knew that the position where I could fit would be either at 8 or in one of the two most advanced places, but obviously later, as the games went on, I almost always had Bernardo ahead of me and that was also one of the dynamics that the manager liked to see and wanted to keep it. That exchange of positions between me and Bernardo , since we both can do it and know what we have to do in each of them... That rotation that sometimes ends up happening naturally is not thought about, worked on or trained, the coach simply knows that we can do it to do. We both understand each other very well playing together and it's a dynamic that works very well. But that first time, I wanted to play, regardless of the position I put myself in. We all just want to play and play for as long as possible. I was a little indifferent to the position I was going to put myself in.
- But, for those who have already publicly admitted that they really like the last pass, the finishing and the shot, doesn't the retreat on the field take away some of the joy of playing? Just a little bit?
- No, because, if we look at it, I was the player with the most assists. I continued to score a lot of goals, five or six, I don't remember exactly...
- I wasn't talking specifically about the statistical part, because Bruno naturally stands out, but rather about his presence on the field and whether he feels somewhat embarrassed about being further away from the area...
- No, because the manager gives me a lot of freedom in the way I carry out my duties and I also really like having the ball. At the beginning of my career, I was always an 8, never a 10. When I went to Italy I became more of a 10, although sometimes I was also playing as an 8, so much so that in the under-21 team I was always an 8 with coach Rui Jorge... In the His famous diamond I was almost always one of the 8 and rarely one of the 10, and it's a position in which I feel good. I can pick up more in the game, I have more ball, I can change the dynamics, I can speed up, slow down, I reach the area a lot in the same way… The coach gives me a lot of freedom of movement and, as I mentioned, that change of position with Bernardo also gives me It often frees you to be in more offensive moments. I also know that Bernardo likes to drop down and keep the ball, so it's about understanding between two players so that the best can be brought out from each one. I know that I can feed his game with movement with the ball and unnerve the opposing team, given that he has a lot of quality to hide it, and that means that I will also be further forward later. The team's own dynamics allowed me to always play very high up in this qualification and very much in the last third. What we talked about about the last pass, which I really like even playing lower, having wingers so fast and wingers so open allows me to make a lot of long passes, which is something I also like... And it's so much so that in the middle of the game, Right after making a long pass, I always hear someone's voice saying 'you're going to cry ' . They know perfectly well that it is also one of my qualities. It was probably the qualification in which I felt freest positionally, having the obligation to start from such a fixed position.
Nobody scored as many penalties as Bruno Fernandes for Manchester United. The record is yours and the effectiveness largely comes from a gesture that you have perfected over many years. In an exclusive interview with A BOLA, the midfielder reveals the moment he realized he had found the right formula for the 11 meters.
- He is the greatest penalty taker in the history of Manchester United . Where does the inspiration for that half-stop come from?
- I already told this story once. I took penalties differently. If you look at my penalty against Napoli , which was the first one I took as a professional in a senior team, at Udinese, I made a quick stop two steps away from the ball. I stopped and still had one or two steps to hit the ball. I looked at the goalkeeper a lot earlier. In the past, batsmen weren't studied so much and, in that game, I hit and the ball went under the goalkeeper's arm and it was a goal. I failed the second one. I had two penalties in the same game, against Napoli . I was still very young, I felt a lot of pressure to hit. It was the first time that the coach told me that I would be the one to take the penalties... We had very experienced players and the coach told everyone before the game that it would be me. As soon as he did, I felt that pressure, that there was going to be a penalty in the game. I continued to play like that, I thought I wasn't having much success and then I went to Sampdoria. Then, I wasn't the main hitter and I had a coach, Mister Lilo [ed: Salvatore Foti] , who was even part of Mister José Mourinho's technical team now at Roma , who said to me 'Oh Bruno , why don't you look to the goalkeeper just in your last step?'. I trained differently, without jumping, just with one step, but with one step I didn't feel very comfortable because the balance of the body wasn't as good and the foot wasn't in the place where I wanted it... When I took the step it was already very close to the ball and didn't have time to lift my head and take a good look... The stop came from there. He was giving tips and said 'try a little jump and see if we can do it'. I started training him, that started to go well, until I came to Sporting, where Bas Dost also looked at the goalkeeper in the last step. But Bas had bigger legs than my body and, in time for him to put his left foot in and his right foot to reach the ball, the goalkeeper had to move or he would never get there again. I also watched how Bas did it and he gave me tips. I learned at Sampdoria, I improved at Sporting with Bas Dost.
- At any point did you think it would be as effective as it is?
- Yes, from the moment I started to see that the goalkeepers who trained with me had a lot of difficulties and I did that every day. They rarely hit the ball or, when they did, it was too late to get to the ball. I started to feel confident, thinking 'this has everything to work out'. If I have three goalkeepers on the team, they all went in goal, we trained every week and they knew what I was doing, I started to feel very comfortable. I told them exactly 'I feel more comfortable kicking to one side', 'I feel less comfortable kicking to the other', 'if you move first...', I told them everything that was going on in my head. I thought like this: 'These guys will know, but I'm going to the game and the goalkeeper who's going to defend won't know'. I would rather they train than know everything I thought, and then I would see if it was difficult or not to defend… I started thinking 'this really has an effect…' There's a lot going on in the goalkeeper's head: 'What's going on? I make?' 'He's going to jump, can I get out first?' 'Do I pretend to go one way and go the other?'. Then, as time passes, the goalkeepers obviously start training, they will become more experienced, they watch videos, they see your face, they see your eyes. Today, there is a great dynamic to know everything and anything. And I also started to adapt and now I have three ways of hitting. I focus a lot on the moment of the game, on the goalkeeper in front of me, because I study him beforehand, but also on what I feel at the moment in terms of confidence. Let's imagine it's a penalty at the last minute, I'll go with what I feel most confident in doing at that moment. I can feel that the jump is where I feel most confident in front of that goalkeeper, because he's tall, he has little mobility, he's not that explosive, for a thousand and one reasons... Or that it's better to go straight to the ball with a dry hit because I don't There's so much explosiveness to get to the corners... With that, I'm going to play with the goalkeeper, since we haven't had many penalties lately. However, two or three years ago, we had a huge wave of penalties and I had to reinvent myself.
Do you want to be a playmaker? Bruno Fernandes reveals everything you need to think about
Regarding the difficulties that Manchester United have been experiencing in positional attack, Bruno Fernandes revealed his line of thought regarding the team's way of playing and ended up drawing differences for the rival from the same city and even for the National Team. A pearl in an exclusive interview with A BOLA.
- The number 8 role he has in the Seleção has not been replicated in Manchester United , even though some of the criticisms made against the team focus on the difficulties of construction in midfield. There was even talk several times about players who could be signed, such as Frenkie de Jong , to help resolve this situation. But with Bruno showing in the Seleção what he can count as an 8, did you discuss with the coach the application of the same model at the club? In recent games, he has even played even higher up, alongside McTominay or even alone up front...
- Right now, I'm really playing the spearhead...
- A false 9, right?
- No, it's not the false 9. I don't do those movements. The ones I make are not false 9 because I'm not very used to them. I try my best to make those movements that the coach wants. He also asks me to go down, because my qualities are not to be there on the last line and fight with the central defenders, although I can and will try to do it to the fullest when necessary and the team needs it. I have played, however, especially last season with coach Ten Hag, who is shorter. In fact, against Everton , I played 6 and I still think it was one of the most complete games I've played, at all levels. In terms of passing, game organization, defense, tactics... I have a little in my head that I'm going to end my career further back, because everyone who started there and went to 10 ended up retreating on the field at the end. It's a position I like, playing lower, more facing the game. With the ball, it makes my game a lot easier because I have a broader view of the game and is ideal for what we talked about about the last pass... which can sometimes come from lower on the pitch. The game with Everton was the one in which I created the most scoring opportunities even though I was playing lower and not playing as a 10.
- We were talking about Manchester United ’s difficulties in building…
- The construction of the game is not due to the defense, the midfield or just the attack, because it is often done by several movements, by several components necessary for the team to have the correct options to be able to play. If we have transition players, it ends up being difficult for them to become players in possession. His qualities are more in the counterattack than in keeping the ball. We have to be aware that in our team the wingers and strikers, and probably excluding Martial , who likes more to come and look for the game, who is more of a striker with the ball at his feet, holding defenders back, are more of a counter player. -attack, offensive transition, more with the ball in depth than with the ball at the foot. The ball at the foot appears more in the last third, so that they can then get into the 1x1, another of their greatest qualities.
- It's a very different reality to that of Manchester City ...
- Manchester United 's identity has never been about playing a lot of supported football, it is a team with a lot of intensity, intense and offensive football. That's the club's idea. Sometimes we make the mistake of thinking that all teams have to play in possession... I want to play in possession, I want to have the ball as much as possible. It's obvious, because players who like to play with the ball want to have it as much as possible, but sometimes we have to fit into the environment we're in. And it's not possible for us to play in the same way as Manchester City , because Manchester City has supporting wingers, very good in 1x1 too, but footballers who really like to play in support and also inside. I can't ask Rashford and Garnacho , pure wingers, to play inside in the same way as others who perhaps started their careers as midfielders or as number 10s and fell to the lines. I can't ask Rashford or Garnacho to do what Bernardo does when he plays as a winger. It's a completely wrong idea, because Bernardo knows how to be between the lines, he's used to being in the middle and playing from the back is not as simple as it seems. People sometimes have this idea that all players have to do what others do. No, we have specific characteristics that define us as players and make us very good at doing what we do. People have to understand that we do what enhances the quality of the player alongside us. People say ' Bruno needs to keep the ball more', but obviously if I'm playing in position 10 and the ball goes between the lines and I spin... and when the ball goes between the lines it's because the pressure was high... At the moment in which I turn, the pressure is on my back and I can't go back, because if I go back I'll meet the pressure. The ball comes and I can play support or simply keep it and go to the wing. However, if I rotate and have my two wingers making the movement in depth, my option is either to carry the ball, wall with my striker or watch the depth of my wingers. If my extremes are more open, what do I think they want? Ball at the foot to take advantage of the 1x1. I have to play with the quality I have at my side.
- When I go to the Seleção I won't give Bernardo depth . I know that Bernardo will not run deep, nor is it a characteristic of his that enhances our team. But if I catch the ball and Leão is already running, I'll probably put the ball deep, because I know he has incredible speed. Or I wait a little longer for the opposing defense to drop and Leão to open up more, and I give him the ball for what he likes most, which is going 1x1. If I play Félix , then I'll probably give him a stronger pass between the lines. If it's Jota, I'll play a deep pass between the center and the wing. Pedro Neto I can either go deep in the box or on the foot, because he is also a 1x1 player. And I could continue here... If I play Cristiano , I can either play on the wall or in those movements he likes to make behind the striker. The short diagonal... With Gonçalo Ramos it's more of a movement when I'm close to the area, he goes around the central defender and likes to see the cross, or he goes around the central defender in front and attacks the first post. I have to know the players who play with me. I do this reading very well, but I realize that, from the outside, people want to play in a certain way and don't understand the reading of the game or the player.
- There are so many coaches out there now, aren't there?
- (Laughter) I don't know if it's a coach or not, I like to read, I like to know how... Because I also like the people who play with me to enhance me to the maximum... If a winger goes in a 1x1 situation and attacks the area and they know that I'm still there outside of it, I think most of them know that I like the ball slowly backwards to shoot at goal, because it's one of my greatest qualities. Or, for example, when Bernardo drags the full-back and stops, and I'm there at the edge of the area, he knows I want the ball slowly to put in a cross. It's little things. If we know the player we will enhance our teammate and, at the same time, the team.
Manchester United and National Team midfielder talks about his expectations for Euro-2024, his club and the criticisms made of him, Sporting and also gives a true master class on what a 'playmaker' should be
- Talking now about what this Selection is with Roberto Martínez, what was the first thing you thought of when the selector told you that he was going to be the first organizer, a kind of 8?
- Not at all, because the first time we played we had a three-man defense, with two midfielders and then we had two wingers inside, two 10s basically, and two wingers and a striker. I knew that the position where I could fit would be either at 8 or in one of the two most advanced places, but obviously later, as the games went on, I almost always had Bernardo ahead of me and that was also one of the dynamics that the manager liked to see and wanted to keep it. That exchange of positions between me and Bernardo , since we both can do it and know what we have to do in each of them... That rotation that sometimes ends up happening naturally is not thought about, worked on or trained, the coach simply knows that we can do it to do. We both understand each other very well playing together and it's a dynamic that works very well. But that first time, I wanted to play, regardless of the position I put myself in. We all just want to play and play for as long as possible. I was a little indifferent to the position I was going to put myself in.
- But, for those who have already publicly admitted that they really like the last pass, the finishing and the shot, doesn't the retreat on the field take away some of the joy of playing? Just a little bit?
- No, because, if we look at it, I was the player with the most assists. I continued to score a lot of goals, five or six, I don't remember exactly...
- I wasn't talking specifically about the statistical part, because Bruno naturally stands out, but rather about his presence on the field and whether he feels somewhat embarrassed about being further away from the area...
- No, because the manager gives me a lot of freedom in the way I carry out my duties and I also really like having the ball. At the beginning of my career, I was always an 8, never a 10. When I went to Italy I became more of a 10, although sometimes I was also playing as an 8, so much so that in the under-21 team I was always an 8 with coach Rui Jorge... In the His famous diamond I was almost always one of the 8 and rarely one of the 10, and it's a position in which I feel good. I can pick up more in the game, I have more ball, I can change the dynamics, I can speed up, slow down, I reach the area a lot in the same way… The coach gives me a lot of freedom of movement and, as I mentioned, that change of position with Bernardo also gives me It often frees you to be in more offensive moments. I also know that Bernardo likes to drop down and keep the ball, so it's about understanding between two players so that the best can be brought out from each one. I know that I can feed his game with movement with the ball and unnerve the opposing team, given that he has a lot of quality to hide it, and that means that I will also be further forward later. The team's own dynamics allowed me to always play very high up in this qualification and very much in the last third. What we talked about about the last pass, which I really like even playing lower, having wingers so fast and wingers so open allows me to make a lot of long passes, which is something I also like... And it's so much so that in the middle of the game, Right after making a long pass, I always hear someone's voice saying 'you're going to cry ' . They know perfectly well that it is also one of my qualities. It was probably the qualification in which I felt freest positionally, having the obligation to start from such a fixed position.
Nobody scored as many penalties as Bruno Fernandes for Manchester United. The record is yours and the effectiveness largely comes from a gesture that you have perfected over many years. In an exclusive interview with A BOLA, the midfielder reveals the moment he realized he had found the right formula for the 11 meters.
- He is the greatest penalty taker in the history of Manchester United . Where does the inspiration for that half-stop come from?
- I already told this story once. I took penalties differently. If you look at my penalty against Napoli , which was the first one I took as a professional in a senior team, at Udinese, I made a quick stop two steps away from the ball. I stopped and still had one or two steps to hit the ball. I looked at the goalkeeper a lot earlier. In the past, batsmen weren't studied so much and, in that game, I hit and the ball went under the goalkeeper's arm and it was a goal. I failed the second one. I had two penalties in the same game, against Napoli . I was still very young, I felt a lot of pressure to hit. It was the first time that the coach told me that I would be the one to take the penalties... We had very experienced players and the coach told everyone before the game that it would be me. As soon as he did, I felt that pressure, that there was going to be a penalty in the game. I continued to play like that, I thought I wasn't having much success and then I went to Sampdoria. Then, I wasn't the main hitter and I had a coach, Mister Lilo [ed: Salvatore Foti] , who was even part of Mister José Mourinho's technical team now at Roma , who said to me 'Oh Bruno , why don't you look to the goalkeeper just in your last step?'. I trained differently, without jumping, just with one step, but with one step I didn't feel very comfortable because the balance of the body wasn't as good and the foot wasn't in the place where I wanted it... When I took the step it was already very close to the ball and didn't have time to lift my head and take a good look... The stop came from there. He was giving tips and said 'try a little jump and see if we can do it'. I started training him, that started to go well, until I came to Sporting, where Bas Dost also looked at the goalkeeper in the last step. But Bas had bigger legs than my body and, in time for him to put his left foot in and his right foot to reach the ball, the goalkeeper had to move or he would never get there again. I also watched how Bas did it and he gave me tips. I learned at Sampdoria, I improved at Sporting with Bas Dost.
- At any point did you think it would be as effective as it is?
- Yes, from the moment I started to see that the goalkeepers who trained with me had a lot of difficulties and I did that every day. They rarely hit the ball or, when they did, it was too late to get to the ball. I started to feel confident, thinking 'this has everything to work out'. If I have three goalkeepers on the team, they all went in goal, we trained every week and they knew what I was doing, I started to feel very comfortable. I told them exactly 'I feel more comfortable kicking to one side', 'I feel less comfortable kicking to the other', 'if you move first...', I told them everything that was going on in my head. I thought like this: 'These guys will know, but I'm going to the game and the goalkeeper who's going to defend won't know'. I would rather they train than know everything I thought, and then I would see if it was difficult or not to defend… I started thinking 'this really has an effect…' There's a lot going on in the goalkeeper's head: 'What's going on? I make?' 'He's going to jump, can I get out first?' 'Do I pretend to go one way and go the other?'. Then, as time passes, the goalkeepers obviously start training, they will become more experienced, they watch videos, they see your face, they see your eyes. Today, there is a great dynamic to know everything and anything. And I also started to adapt and now I have three ways of hitting. I focus a lot on the moment of the game, on the goalkeeper in front of me, because I study him beforehand, but also on what I feel at the moment in terms of confidence. Let's imagine it's a penalty at the last minute, I'll go with what I feel most confident in doing at that moment. I can feel that the jump is where I feel most confident in front of that goalkeeper, because he's tall, he has little mobility, he's not that explosive, for a thousand and one reasons... Or that it's better to go straight to the ball with a dry hit because I don't There's so much explosiveness to get to the corners... With that, I'm going to play with the goalkeeper, since we haven't had many penalties lately. However, two or three years ago, we had a huge wave of penalties and I had to reinvent myself.
Do you want to be a playmaker? Bruno Fernandes reveals everything you need to think about
Regarding the difficulties that Manchester United have been experiencing in positional attack, Bruno Fernandes revealed his line of thought regarding the team's way of playing and ended up drawing differences for the rival from the same city and even for the National Team. A pearl in an exclusive interview with A BOLA.
- The number 8 role he has in the Seleção has not been replicated in Manchester United , even though some of the criticisms made against the team focus on the difficulties of construction in midfield. There was even talk several times about players who could be signed, such as Frenkie de Jong , to help resolve this situation. But with Bruno showing in the Seleção what he can count as an 8, did you discuss with the coach the application of the same model at the club? In recent games, he has even played even higher up, alongside McTominay or even alone up front...
- Right now, I'm really playing the spearhead...
- A false 9, right?
- No, it's not the false 9. I don't do those movements. The ones I make are not false 9 because I'm not very used to them. I try my best to make those movements that the coach wants. He also asks me to go down, because my qualities are not to be there on the last line and fight with the central defenders, although I can and will try to do it to the fullest when necessary and the team needs it. I have played, however, especially last season with coach Ten Hag, who is shorter. In fact, against Everton , I played 6 and I still think it was one of the most complete games I've played, at all levels. In terms of passing, game organization, defense, tactics... I have a little in my head that I'm going to end my career further back, because everyone who started there and went to 10 ended up retreating on the field at the end. It's a position I like, playing lower, more facing the game. With the ball, it makes my game a lot easier because I have a broader view of the game and is ideal for what we talked about about the last pass... which can sometimes come from lower on the pitch. The game with Everton was the one in which I created the most scoring opportunities even though I was playing lower and not playing as a 10.
- We were talking about Manchester United ’s difficulties in building…
- The construction of the game is not due to the defense, the midfield or just the attack, because it is often done by several movements, by several components necessary for the team to have the correct options to be able to play. If we have transition players, it ends up being difficult for them to become players in possession. His qualities are more in the counterattack than in keeping the ball. We have to be aware that in our team the wingers and strikers, and probably excluding Martial , who likes more to come and look for the game, who is more of a striker with the ball at his feet, holding defenders back, are more of a counter player. -attack, offensive transition, more with the ball in depth than with the ball at the foot. The ball at the foot appears more in the last third, so that they can then get into the 1x1, another of their greatest qualities.
- It's a very different reality to that of Manchester City ...
- Manchester United 's identity has never been about playing a lot of supported football, it is a team with a lot of intensity, intense and offensive football. That's the club's idea. Sometimes we make the mistake of thinking that all teams have to play in possession... I want to play in possession, I want to have the ball as much as possible. It's obvious, because players who like to play with the ball want to have it as much as possible, but sometimes we have to fit into the environment we're in. And it's not possible for us to play in the same way as Manchester City , because Manchester City has supporting wingers, very good in 1x1 too, but footballers who really like to play in support and also inside. I can't ask Rashford and Garnacho , pure wingers, to play inside in the same way as others who perhaps started their careers as midfielders or as number 10s and fell to the lines. I can't ask Rashford or Garnacho to do what Bernardo does when he plays as a winger. It's a completely wrong idea, because Bernardo knows how to be between the lines, he's used to being in the middle and playing from the back is not as simple as it seems. People sometimes have this idea that all players have to do what others do. No, we have specific characteristics that define us as players and make us very good at doing what we do. People have to understand that we do what enhances the quality of the player alongside us. People say ' Bruno needs to keep the ball more', but obviously if I'm playing in position 10 and the ball goes between the lines and I spin... and when the ball goes between the lines it's because the pressure was high... At the moment in which I turn, the pressure is on my back and I can't go back, because if I go back I'll meet the pressure. The ball comes and I can play support or simply keep it and go to the wing. However, if I rotate and have my two wingers making the movement in depth, my option is either to carry the ball, wall with my striker or watch the depth of my wingers. If my extremes are more open, what do I think they want? Ball at the foot to take advantage of the 1x1. I have to play with the quality I have at my side.
- When I go to the Seleção I won't give Bernardo depth . I know that Bernardo will not run deep, nor is it a characteristic of his that enhances our team. But if I catch the ball and Leão is already running, I'll probably put the ball deep, because I know he has incredible speed. Or I wait a little longer for the opposing defense to drop and Leão to open up more, and I give him the ball for what he likes most, which is going 1x1. If I play Félix , then I'll probably give him a stronger pass between the lines. If it's Jota, I'll play a deep pass between the center and the wing. Pedro Neto I can either go deep in the box or on the foot, because he is also a 1x1 player. And I could continue here... If I play Cristiano , I can either play on the wall or in those movements he likes to make behind the striker. The short diagonal... With Gonçalo Ramos it's more of a movement when I'm close to the area, he goes around the central defender and likes to see the cross, or he goes around the central defender in front and attacks the first post. I have to know the players who play with me. I do this reading very well, but I realize that, from the outside, people want to play in a certain way and don't understand the reading of the game or the player.
- There are so many coaches out there now, aren't there?
- (Laughter) I don't know if it's a coach or not, I like to read, I like to know how... Because I also like the people who play with me to enhance me to the maximum... If a winger goes in a 1x1 situation and attacks the area and they know that I'm still there outside of it, I think most of them know that I like the ball slowly backwards to shoot at goal, because it's one of my greatest qualities. Or, for example, when Bernardo drags the full-back and stops, and I'm there at the edge of the area, he knows I want the ball slowly to put in a cross. It's little things. If we know the player we will enhance our teammate and, at the same time, the team.
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