[UnitedRepublic]

I think we United supporters are used to not see a number 10 in our team even since the Fergie days. We had Mata but he was deployed on the wing a lot and Kagawa didn’t get a lot of playing time. So we are holding Bruno up higher than we should and stats are blinding us from seeing players for who they really are beyond the stats of goals and assists. When a game gets tough you just need to nail the basics at least just to be able to get some rythm. Next season I’m sure Amad will challange him for that spot.

 

[Gandalf]

So great how after one bad game we start dragging one of our best players and arguing amongst ourselves. I am sure our rivals will be devastated to see us fall back to infighting and trashing our own players. The ABU media starts the fires and we all rush to fan the flames. We don’t deserve to be happy.

 

[Pearson]

It was a bad day at the office, and it seems some people here want to make it worse.

Bruno had an atypically bad day, for sure. But that ninety minutes should not snuff out his fighting spirit he showed when we played and trailed against Barcelona and City.

He has been here for more than two years now, and all things considered, he is one of the best players this club has at the moment. There is a reason why he wears the armband when Maguire is not on the pitch.

It was a dark day for United. And we want to single out a player to blame? Where is the togetherness that has been the key to the resurgence of the club this season? I thought we should stand together and weather the storm together.

 

[YSB99]

Cash in on him this summer, he’s too loose with the ball for a team that wants to win the big prizes never mind the fact that he’s a complete disgrace,

I never really warmed to him to begin with but after yesterday I genuinely can’t stand him and the sooner he’s gone the better

same for a few others,

 

[city-puma]

It was a bad day at the office, and it seems some people here want to make it worse.

Bruno had an atypically bad day, for sure. But that ninety minutes should not snuff out his fighting spirit he showed when we played and trailed against Barcelona and City.

He has been here for more than two years now, and all things considered, he is one of the best players this club has at the moment. There is a reason why he wears the armband when Maguire is not on the pitch.

It was a dark day for United. And we want to single out a player to blame? Where is the togetherness that has been the key to the resurgence of the club this season? I thought we should stand together and weather the storm together.

Many Manchester United fans do not know what’s “United”, I have to say.

 

[Pearson]

Many Manchester United fans do not know what’s “United”, I have to say.

That is extremely disappointing, isn't it?

It is the reaction to the setbacks that defines this club.

Bruno has been great this season. That is why he plays the most minutes. He has had a dark day, so has everyone else. No doubt he deserves some criticism, so does everyone else. Just let it go and focus on the next game and work hard to bounce back.

 

[Esquire]

So great how after one bad game we start dragging one of our best players and arguing amongst ourselves. I am sure our rivals will be devastated to see us fall back to infighting and trashing our own players. The ABU media starts the fires and we all rush to fan the flames. We don’t deserve to be happy.

Completely agree with this. Bruno is definitely our talisman or one of the key men to our success. ETH should give him a stern talking to and say we expect one of our senior leaders in the team especially wearing the armband against Liverpool to lead by example. Bruno is an intelligent guy and this reflects in his interviews etc. He needs to mature his on pitch behaviour for sure but no need to crucify him.

 

[ryryzz]

There was a time in the first half, i had to check the line-up just to make sure Bruno was playing

 

[city-puma]

That is extremely disappointing, isn't it?

It is the reaction to the setbacks that defines this club.

Bruno has been great this season. That is why he plays the most minutes. He has had a dark day, so has everyone else. No doubt he deserves some criticism, so does everyone else. Just let it go and focus on the next game and work hard to bounce back.

Exactly. Hours after the game, I understand people need to release their anger, shock, disbelief, frustration, upset, whatever. But, a day later, still doing it?!!!!!! It’s time to get behind the team to support them to overcome this setback.

 

[Lyng]

Exactly. Hours after the game, I understand people need to release their anger, shock, disbelief, frustration, upset, whatever. But, a day later, still doing it?!!!!!! It’s time to get behind the team to support them to overcome this setback.

To be fair I dont think this thread would be active if some people didnt go in all defensive mode and wouldnt even accept he had a poor attitude this game.
I think its perfectly fair to demand more of your captain, especially against your historic rivals. And I am not talking about performance here, since that can be excused by the fact that Ten Hag has played him into the ground and refused to rest him when having the option to.
The issue was his attitude and behaviour which was really off. His antics normally dont irritate me that much, but when its clearly affecting the whole team then it becomes a huge issue.
His biggest fans on here need to accept that its fair to question his behaviour in this game and then move on.

 

[Real Name]

That he's a shit captain and a petulant primadona.

Except it doesnt.

 

[Real Name]

Like him as a player but his constant whining, throwing his hands in the air etc grinds my gears.
And I get that he’s knackered but it really irritated me yesterday him just visibly giving up. He’s the captain, regardless if it’s 7-0 with minutes to go, you should want to ensure it doesn’t get worse

Agree. Next year Licha or Varane should be promoted to captain.
What irritates me is people making up things based on videos which dont prove anything just cause they hate his guts. See above.

 

[kouroux]

To be fair I dont think this thread would be active if some people didnt go in all defensive mode and wouldnt even accept he had a poor attitude this game.
I think its perfectly fair to demand more of your captain, especially against your historic rivals. And I am not talking about performance here, since that can be excused by the fact that Ten Hag has played him into the ground and refused to rest him when having the option to.
The issue was his attitude and behaviour which was really off. His antics normally dont irritate me that much, but when its clearly affecting the whole team then it becomes a huge issue.
His biggest fans on here need to accept that its fair to question his behaviour in this game and then move on.

This game and others tbh. No player is perfect in his behavior and Bruno has been doing a lot more "good" than "bad" for United by far. I honestly think being less petulant and more focused during games won't make him a worse player. I don't think it would affect his performances badly

 

[united for life]

He’ll have a good performance next game and everyone will go back to “my captain” comments.

He’s an excellent player and is key for us. People just like drama.

i just hope ten hag rests him a bit as he really needs it. I also hope bruno is not played out of position again.

 

[Jeppers7]

The likes of David Beckham, Wayne Rooney or Nani wouldn’t have got away with the way Bruno behaved on Sunday. They would’ve been slated. Anyone defending him for his attitude throughout Sundays game, never mind his performance, needs to take the blinkers off.

I can’t imagine ETH will put up with that once more, and I don’t believe Bruno will act this way again…..So moving on from it is the logical conclusion

 

[Jeppers7]

He’ll have a good performance next game and everyone will go back to “my captain” comments.

He’s an excellent player and is key for us. People just like drama.

i just hope ten hag rests him a bit as he really needs it. I also hope bruno is not played out of position again.

I’d say if you look at those who posted that, it will be mainly the same select bunch who are defending his attitude on Sunday as opposed to ‘everyone’ he didn’t even play well in the final.

 

[That_Bloke]

That's where you are wrong. That's also the point the other thread has been trying to make. He simply needs to play in this chaotic way to get his high stats.

It doesn't mean that he's not intelligent or that he's just a street footballer. He wants to be the main provider and he can produce good numbers. But his game lacks a lot of things: Technique, ball retention and ball carrying skills and the ability to receive the ball on the half-turn. So, he often shifts out of position and roams into the spaces where he believes he can have the space and the time on the ball to pick out a pass while facing the goal. The likes of KdB or Odegaard may have similar passing completion stats, but they don't lack all of these things. This makes them capable to operate within the frame of a structured system. And a well structured system leads to well-drilled moves (and their variants) on the pitch. Which is the basis around which most good football sides have been built in the last 15 years or so.

I believe you can understand the paradox when you're arguing that the man who wants to be at the heart of our midfield needs better possession players around him. Possession football is all about controlling the chaotic nature of football. It's about taming the chaos, not embracing it. I am also not sure but, judging by experience, whenever people say that possession teams lack a cutting edge, they mean Pep's sides who like to pass the ball into oblivion. Well, in the previous 6 years they've been averaging 95 PL goals p/s, mostly by playing without a main striker, too. Structure and purposeful movement on the ball can provide you with a cutting edge. And, as opposed to relying on individualism, it's more dependable and lasting. It's also harder to achieve. In the end, the question isn't really about Bruno's numbers or his commitment to the cause. It's about whether we are going to continue being a side that lives and dies by how he chooses to play the game.

That's a great post.

 

[Real Name]

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

Are we really going to put Liverpool fan channels tweets here.

 

[golden_blunder]

Agree. Next year Licha or Varane should be promoted to captain.
What irritates me is people making up things based on videos which dont prove anything just cause they hate his guts. See above.

Personally I’d have Casemiro

 

[georgipep]

Many Manchester United fans do not know what’s “United”, I have to say.

As with everything in life, think about the average "person", the average "fan", the average "anything". Now realize that average means there are 50% worse than that.

 

[Lyng]

This game and others tbh. No player is perfect in his behavior and Bruno has been doing a lot more "good" than "bad" for United by far. I honestly think being less petulant and more focused during games won't make him a worse player. I don't think it would affect his performances badly

I agree, if anything it will probably make him better.

 

[That_Bloke]

Bruno will get cooked because there is a large portion of fan base that does not like him.

If someone tells me the reason we lost 7-0 is because of Bruno, is clearly clueless. His antics were not great but I am sure Ten Hag will deal with it and he will be told very firmly that his behaviour was not acceptable.

However; this is what fans wanted, something to go at Bruno about and they have got it. Its up to him now to show his character.

If he rises, well done, if not, he doesn't have the mentality for United.

I think it's pretty telling when a player is universally despised not only by all of the opposition fans but also by a good chunk of the fans of his own club.

I insist on "despised" because it's certainly not about his footballing ability, he got plenty of that, but about his antics and pathetic behavior on the pitch, even by today's standards. Anyone who played a bit of football knows that he's exactly the type of player you just can't rely on when things go south. They will drag the team down by constantly moaning, complaining and simply give up at some point. They'll get on your nerves and make you lose yours, as well as your confidence. His attitude is poison and it's contagious, especially when you're chasing a game. He plays for himself not the team. I thought that Ten Hag would reign him a bit, but it seems that it's just who he is and he can't help himself.

How he ended up being captain or was even considered for the armband is beyond me.

 

[cyberman]

So great how after one bad game we start dragging one of our best players and arguing amongst ourselves. I am sure our rivals will be devastated to see us fall back to infighting and trashing our own players. The ABU media starts the fires and we all rush to fan the flames. We don’t deserve to be happy.

It’s honestly ridiculous at this point. I’ve never seen a big deal made about who’s captain before Sunday yet here we are. Now it’s the most important thing in the world.
Everybody lost their head. Do we give the captaincy to a sub who didn’t play because Bruno wasn’t worse than any of his replacements that were on that pitch

 

[Lyng]

It’s honestly ridiculous at this point. I’ve never seen a big deal made about who’s captain before Sunday yet here we are. Now it’s the most important thing in the world.
Everybody lost their head. Do we give the captaincy to a sub who didn’t play because Bruno wasn’t worse than any of his replacements that were on that pitch

People have been talking about this ever since Ole had a brainfart and gave Maguire the armband.

 

[cyberman]

People have been talking about this ever since Ole had a brainfart and gave Maguire the armband.

I don’t remember that? Is there pages and pages and pages of this since Maguire is still the captain and doesn’t play?

 

[Lyng]

I don’t remember that? Is there pages and pages and pages of this since Maguire is still the captain and doesn’t play?

No but there was pages upon pages before he got benched.
I should know because I was one of his main critics after his antics where he copped his ears.

 

[Bobcat]

Some of the "hot takes" on here are absoloutely insane. Yes hes a whiny cnut at times, and that was a terrible captains performance, but hes still one of our key players and one of the few consitent performes we've had the last years

 

[cyberman]

No but there was pages upon pages before he got benched.
I should know because I was one of his main critics after his antics where he copped his ears.

I think you’re overplaying this a bit. There were plenty of posters defending him lifting the trophy last week as an example.
Bruno isn’t even captain, it’s Maguire. There’s no meltdown about our actual captain being on the bench instead of the pitch to the point on field captain has been normalised as if Maguire is some sort of mascot in the stands.
If it were so important Maguire wouldn’t be captain now or there would be uproar about it. I haven’t seen the captain role be this blown up since 2003, all captains do is call the coin toss.

 

[Lyng]

I think you’re overplaying this a bit. There were plenty of posters defending him lifting the trophy last week as an example.
Bruno isn’t even captain, it’s Maguire. There’s no meltdown about our actual captain being on the bench instead of the pitch to the point on field captain has been normalised as if Maguire is some sort of mascot in the stands.
If it were so important Maguire wouldn’t be captain now or there would be uproar about it. I haven’t seen the captain role be this blown up since 2003, all captains do is call the coin toss.

Go back and have a look through the Maguire thread. Bruno's captaincy has been discussed after this game. With Maguire it was almost every game.

 

[Tom Van Persie]

I think it's pretty telling when a player is universally despised not only by all of the opposition fans but also by a good chunk of the fans of his own club.

I insist on "despised" because it's certainly not about his footballing ability, he got plenty of that, but about his antics and pathetic behavior on the pitch, even by today's standards. Anyone who played a bit of football knows that he's exactly the type of player you just can't rely on when things go south. They will drag the team down by constantly moaning, complaining and simply give up at some point. They'll get on your nerves and make you lose yours, as well as your confidence. His attitude is poison and it's contagious, especially when you're chasing a game. He plays for himself not the team. I thought that Ten Hag would reign him a bit, but it seems that it's just who he is and he can't help himself.

How he ended up being captain or was even considered for the armband is beyond me.

This is the biggest load of bollocks I've read on here over the last few days. Bruno has gave more for this club than anyone since he joined. He's never missed a game for us even when it was obvious he needed a rest and we never saw his effort levels drop. Also, he got the captains armband because he's respected and gives everything on the pitch. The dressing room knows that along with three managers we've had over the last two seasons.

 

[hmchan]

That's where you are wrong. That's also the point the other thread has been trying to make. He simply needs to play in this chaotic way to get his high stats.

It doesn't mean that he's not intelligent or that he's just a street footballer. He wants to be the main provider and he can produce good numbers. But his game lacks a lot of things: Technique, ball retention and ball carrying skills and the ability to receive the ball on the half-turn. So, he often shifts out of position and roams into the spaces where he believes he can have the space and the time on the ball to pick out a pass while facing the goal. The likes of KdB or Odegaard may have similar passing completion stats, but they don't lack all of these things. This makes them capable to operate within the frame of a structured system. And a well structured system leads to well-drilled moves (and their variants) on the pitch. Which is the basis around which most good football sides have been built in the last 15 years or so.

I believe you can understand the paradox when you're arguing that the man who wants to be at the heart of our midfield needs better possession players around him. Possession football is all about controlling the chaotic nature of football. It's about taming the chaos, not embracing it. I am also not sure but, judging by experience, whenever people say that possession teams lack a cutting edge, they mean Pep's sides who like to pass the ball into oblivion. Well, in the previous 6 years they've been averaging 95 PL goals p/s, mostly by playing without a main striker, too. Structure and purposeful movement on the ball can provide you with a cutting edge. And, as opposed to relying on individualism, it's more dependable and lasting. It's also harder to achieve. In the end, the question isn't really about Bruno's numbers or his commitment to the cause. It's about whether we are going to continue being a side that lives and dies by how he chooses to play the game.

The home defeat against Villa last season was a classic example. Bruno registered 10 key passes that game and got the highest rating in whoscored, but was widely regarded as the worst performer on the pitch. There was one occassion where he asked for ball at RB position and launched a trademark hopeful long ball forward, which was easily collected by Villa's keeper.

Narratives here keep mentioning he's one of the best players this season and he just simply had a bad day. He is not. The likes of Martinez, Shaw, Casemiro, Rashford offer much more than him consistently. Plus they wouldn't drag the team down when they are out of form.

 

[JuriM]

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

I don't know if it's been brought up here, but nobody likes the playacting part of play, but there was a contact and a arm to your face is never plesant.

 

[LordSpud]

Theres never this much scrutiny when it was Salah falling down week after week getting pens or de Bruyne diving a few times this season.

I know its ABU but its fecking frustrating nowadays.

 

[hmchan]

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

I don't know if it's been brought up here, but nobody likes the playacting part of play, but there was a contact and a arm to your face is never plesant.

"Dives are often used to exaggerate the amount of contact made during a challenge." - from Wikipedia

If the tweet agrees he's exaggerating, it's a dive. I don't see a point.

 

[cyberman]

"Dives are often used to exaggerate the amount of contact made during a challenge." - from Wikipedia

If the tweet agrees he's exaggerating, it's a dive. I don't see a point.

Can you show us where Bruno hurt you?
You have no idea how much that hurt, go look at an mma or boxing match and the most soft looking slap to the jaw can send someone loopy and those are professional fighters.
Not saying it’s a boxers punch but everybody reacts differently to a slap on the chin.
plus he 100percent does have a point when dickheads claimed it was in his chest and nowhere near his face.

 

[hmchan]

Can you show us where Bruno hurt you?
You have no idea how much that hurt, go look at an mma or boxing match and the most soft looking slap to the jaw can send someone loopy and those are professional fighters.
Not saying it’s a boxers punch but everybody reacts differently to a slap on the chin.
plus he 100percent does have a point when dickheads claimed it was in his chest and nowhere near his face.

Go look at all Bruno "injuries" and see how he always miraculously recovers when ref doesn't buy his act.

 

[Pogue Mahone]

"Dives are often used to exaggerate the amount of contact made during a challenge." - from Wikipedia

If the tweet agrees he's exaggerating, it's a dive. I don't see a point.

The point is he wasn’t pretending to be hit on the face, after being hit on his chest. Which was the narrative from the commentators (repeated by a lot of our fans)

 

[Roux]

Cash in on him this summer, he’s too loose with the ball for a team that wants to win the big prizes never mind the fact that he’s a complete disgrace,

I never really warmed to him to begin with but after yesterday I genuinely can’t stand him and the sooner he’s gone the better

same for a few others,

This can't be real. He's one the best players in the world right now. Crazy what one bad game does to some fans.

 

[Nou_Camp99]

What annoys me more than anything about this Bruno slander since the weekend is the manager has to take most of the blame for playing him on the left wing.

It might not excuse his whining and playacting but the manager set us up to fail at the weekend. Anfield is no place to start experimenting. And I love this manager but he needs to have a good long hard look at himself too for those ridiculous tactics. Weghorst at 10 and Bruno on left didn't work at all. It was absolutely to the detriment of our team and also allowed Trent a free ride too.

Let's not make this about Bruno. The whole team was crap and so was the manager. The worst result in our entire history you could argue. Absolutely still fuming about it.

 

[JuriM]

"Dives are often used to exaggerate the amount of contact made during a challenge." - from Wikipedia

If the tweet agrees he's exaggerating, it's a dive. I don't see a point.

That fecking sucks to get hit in the face like that, played youth-level handball and basketball - so had plenty of that kind of contact. It might seem very minor at a distance, but it can hurt like a bitch even if the contact was minor.