In recent years, Manchester United have one standout performer who has grown into the club's captain and leader on the pitch - Bruno Fernandes.
Having signed from Sporting in January 2020 for a deal worth initially £47 million, he impressed in Portugal and was seen as a smart acquisition. The Portugal star exploded onto the scene in England after his debut, with 12 goals and eight assists in just 22 games. The following year, he recorded 28 goals and 17 assists, emerging as a key figure.
While United have fallen in terms of their club stature, he has remained a constant in the team, missing just three games in over five years since arriving. Under Erik ten Hag, Fernandes featured in multiple midfield roles and captained the side through their poor form, often being their saviour, and he's also lifted both the FA Cup and League Cup during that time.
With that in mind, we've decided to look back on the starting XI who began Fernandes' debut game, which came against Wolves in the Premier League - a drab affair that ended goalless at Old Trafford - to see where those players are now.
Bruno Fernandes, Kevin De Bruyne, Martin Odegaard. Related
12 Best Midfielders in the Premier League Right Now (2025)
Kevin De Bruyne, Bruno Fernandes and Martin Odegaard all feature in the Premier League's top 12 midfielders right now.
GK - David de Gea
Current Club: Fiorentina
David De Gea Fiorentina
Despite the brilliant heights David de Gea reached at United, his final few years were full of controversy, inconsistent performances and criticism. When he finally exited in 2023 after 12 years at the club, it felt like the end of an era. He then spent more than a year as a free agent, waiting for the right opportunity before deciding to sign with Fiorentina, who are challenging for European football in Serie A and are among the best sides remaining in the Europa Conference League.
David Seaman Related
David Seaman Named His Top 5 Goalkeepers in Premier League History
Former Arsenal and England star David Seaman ranks his top five goalkeepers of the Premier League era..
During his time at the club, De Gea won five trophies as well as three additional Community Shield titles. In his prime, he was considered one of the best keepers in world football, and he was a five-time PFA Team of the Year feature. The shot-stopper also won the Match of the Day 'Save of the Season' award on five occasions, further evidencing his quality, and he even made the FIFA World 11 in 2018. While the final few seasons were somewhat sour, his prime was a sight to behold.
RB - Aaron Wan-Bissaka
Current Club: West Ham United
Aaron Wan-Bissaka
Having seen his place in the United side become less prominent over his final two seasons, Aaron Wan-Bissaka opted for a move to West Ham United in 2024, signing in a £15 million deal, which constituted a significant loss from the £50 million they paid for him in 2019. He managed 190 appearances but failed to truly hold down a starting place.
Despite his incredible tackling ability, (Jamie Carragher once described him as the best one-on-one defender in the world), there was a lack of quality in an attacking sense, which held back United's style of play. The rise of Diogo Dalot saw Wan-Bissaka's role minimised in his final few seasons, and he left amicably for a bargain and is now a key starter at West Ham.
CB - Harry Maguire
Current Club: Manchester United
Harry Maguire
Still at the club, it has been a journey and a half for Harry Maguire since that game five years ago, battling adversity, controversy and more on and off the pitch. He has gone from a key starter to their fourth/fifth-choice centre-back, and then somehow back again. The club recently triggered an extension on his deal, and now he's contracted until June 2026.
With the club signing the likes of Lisandro Martinez, Raphael Varane, Matthijs De Ligt and Leny Yoro across the past few years, Maguire has remained a consistent figure in the squad, earning plenty of minutes, but his long-term future looks uncertain as a massive overhaul looms.
EPL_Solanke, Bellingham and Sancho Related
10 Most Expensive British Players in Football History by Total Transfer Fees [Ranked]
Some of these British stars have gone on to win a myriad of trophies, whilst others have moved around a lot and not lived up to their price tags.
CB - Victor Lindelof
Current Club: Manchester United
Victor Lindelof
Victor Lindelof finds himself in a similar position to Maguire, as his place has been heavily discussed in recent seasons and an exit has been close on a few occasions now. However, with his deal set to expire in 2025, this is likely to be his final season at the club.
The last time he was considered a key starter was in the 2021/22 season, and he has played the majority of his time in the United team alongside the likes of Varane and Maguire. As mentioned, this is likely to be the final season for the 30-year-old, who will finish with nearly 300 appearances for the club.
LB - Luke Shaw
Current Club: Manchester United
Luke Shaw
While Luke Shaw has always been considered a top-class left-back, he has struggled with injuries consistently throughout his United career, which has held him back from truly elevating the team to greater heights. Since making 47 appearances in the 2022/23 season, he's managed just 18 games.
His injury list shows five separate setbacks that saw him miss over 100 days of action and nearly 30 injury incidents since 2014. The two biggest injuries were his Tibia and Fibula fractures in 2015, which saw him miss nearly a year, and his foot injury in 2017, which kept him out for 191 days. Having been at the club since 2014, the fact that he's averaged just 26 games a year across 10 and a half years speaks volumes about his injury history. At his best, however, Shaw is a key figure in United's success and was even in the PFA Team of the Year in 2021.
EPL_Most Expensive Teenagers Related
15 Most Expensive Teenagers in Premier League History (Ranked)
The inflation of the transfer market for young players is evident year after year.
CM - Andreas Pereira
Current Club: Fulham
Andreas Pereira
While Andreas Pereira was never truly a starter for United, he managed to get the nod on Fernandes' debut. In fact, across the eight years he spent at Old Trafford, half of that time was spent on loan. He eventually joined Fulham in 2022 for a fee of around £10 million and has been a key figure in recent seasons for the London club.
That form has seen him go on to feature for the Brazil national team as well, and he has thrived since leaving Manchester. Given Pereira made just 75 appearances, most of them came from the bench or in games where United's team was heavily rotated and the four goals and five assists he mustered across that time showed that he needed to be elsewhere to thrive.
CM - Fred
Current Club: Fenerbache
Fred
The Brazilian midfielder was heavily criticised at times during his United career, perhaps unfairly at times, largely down to the fact that he cost £47 million. Despite that, Fred formed a strong partnership with Scott McTominay for a period, in which the duo were nicknamed 'McFred'. However, his place was later lost to Casemiro and Christian Eriksen, and he became a rotation figure at best.
That led him to exit in 2023 after five years at the club, opting to join Turkish giants Fenerbahce for a fee of less than £10 million, as United reported another significant financial loss on a player. Nevertheless, Fred was always a willing runner, managed 213 appearances, and was always available and gave 110% despite his technical shortcomings.
LW - Dan James
Current Club: Leeds United
Dan James
Initially signed from Swansea City after impressing in the Championship, Dan James enjoyed a stunning debut for United, netting against Chelsea in the 2019/20 season opener at Old Trafford. He played over 3000 minutes and produced four goals and seven assists in that debut campaign, but his form began to drop off as his place in the team became less frequent.
The flying winger played nearly half the number of minutes in the following season and then was allowed to leave for Leeds United, where he currently resides, hoping to push the Yorkshire side back into the top flight. At his best, James displayed incredible pace and an ability to thrive on the counter-attack, but it was perhaps too big a gap to bridge, moving from Swansea in 2019.
Theo Walcott (Southampton), Adama Traore (Barcelona), Obafemi Martins Related
10 Greatest Speed Merchants in Football History [Ranked]
A Manchester United flop ranks first.
RW - Juan Mata
Current Club: Western Sydney Wanderers
Juan Mata
Despite spending the longest spell of his career at United, it was arguably one of the least effective periods of Juan Mata's career. Originally joining after becoming Chelsea's Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons, he never truly became a starting figure and, despite making nearly 300 appearances across eight years, he left without ever truly making his mark.
A combination of different managers' systems, a regular influx of players in attacking positions, his decline and a forever-changing side led to him becoming a rotation player, but Mata still managed to lift the FA Cup, League Cup and Europa League. He still managed 51 goals and 42 assists across that time, but it was clear that he was far more effective at Chelsea, Valencia and with Spain.
After leaving, he won back-to-back titles with Galatasaray and Vissel Kobe before then opting to play in Australia with the Western Sydney Wanderers, where he currently resides, aged 36, in the twilight of his career.
CAM - Bruno Fernandes
Current Club: Manchester United
Bruno Fernandes
Since signing in 2020, he has been arguably their best addition of the past decade, given the form he has shown consistently for the side. In fact, he's managed to reach double figures in goals and assists in every single season in all competitions, which is quite remarkable. In that time, he's showcased plenty of brilliant moments and fantastic goals from a distance, with three of them going on to win the Goal of the Month in the Premier League.
Fernandes has also featured in the PFA Team of the Year on one occasion and has been a four-time Player of the Month. Plus, the fans love him for his loyalty, given that he could have left for a smoother career, but he has remained and fought to help United. However, aiming to find another deal as successful as Fernandes for United has been a truly impossible task.
Bruno Fernandes, Kevin De Bruyne, Martin Odegaard. Related
12 Best Midfielders in the Premier League Right Now (2025)
Kevin De Bruyne, Bruno Fernandes and Martin Odegaard all feature in the Premier League's top 12 midfielders right now.
ST - Anthony Martial
Current Club: AEK Athens
Anthony Martial was signed in 2015, making him the most expensive teenager in transfer history - and big things were expected. In fact, there was even a Ballon d'Or clause inserted in his deal; that's how his potential was being viewed at the time after shining at Monaco. It looked to be a brilliant deal as he hit the ground running with a stunner on his debut against Liverpool and went on to enjoy a strong debut campaign.
However, his career never reached the heights it once promised. Over the years, injuries often curtailed any promising runs of form that began to materialise. Martial was hugely exciting under Ole Gunnar Solskjær for a spell, but the addition of attacking signings and too long spent on the sidelines left him destined for an exit. Despite winning multiple trophies and netting 90 goals in 317 games, he left as a free agent to join AEK Athens, where he has rediscovered his fitness and goalscoring touch, netting nine in his first 20 games.
EPL-best-debuts-in-premier-league Related
10 Best Debuts in Premier League History (Ranked)
There have been some incredible debut performances from players in the Premier League era.
Statistics in this article are courtesy of Transfermarkt. Correct as of 29-03-25.