Everything went wrong for Manchester United in the Europa League final, with bad performances across the pitch.
It was a must-win game for Manchester United after a season that has broken records for all the wrong reasons.
Silverware would not have solved United’s problems, but it would have helped Ruben Amorim buy some faith from the fans after a six-month run in which he has shown little reason to have faith.
Amorim spoke pre-game about the Europa League meaning nothing to United, considering the history of the club, however, this ended up a mistake with the players playing as though it was meaningless.
Despite arguably being the better of the two teams, Amorim made several mistakes which will have played a big role in the game ending up with Spurs beating United 1-0 in Bilbao.
It sets up a long and turbulent summer for Amorim, but also the players, as one star in particular will be annoyed with himself.
Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images
Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images
MUTV pundits agree over Bruno Fernandes’ performance
It is on nights like Wednesday that legends are born at Manchester United, but none were made during this Europa League final.
Among numerous poor performances from United players was Bruno Fernandes, who had a rare off day, unfortunately, when it mattered most. The club captain was disappointing, which saw MUTV pundit pair Sammy McIlroy and Fraiser Campbell speak on his display.
More United News
“This is not an excuse,” McIlroy explained. “But tonight was the quietest I’ve seen Bruno all season, whether it was the system, I don’t know, but he’s our player who makes us tick, and even his set plays tonight weren’t as good as usual.”
Following this, Campbell added that Fernandes cannot be blamed, instead insisting the club needs more players who can step up if the 30-year-old is slightly off it.
“He wasn’t at his best today, and that’s no disrespect to Bruno because I am a massive Bruno fan. He gives 110 per cent every time, and he can normally win you a game of football, but you need more Brunos around, more experienced players you can rely on.”
Bruno Fernandes suffers repeat of Europa League final pain at Manchester United
Fernandes was poor, there is no escaping that. With all the hopes of success resting on the Portuguese midfielder, when he didn’t perform it meant there was little prospect of the Red Devils lifting the trophy.
This performance saw Fernandes repeat his 2021 Europa League final outing, which was equally as poor and a rare off night.
Due to this, we saw a repeat of the post-game scenes with Fernandes clearly emotional, having lost the final for a second time.
Fernandes’ struggles proved fatal, and it further proves the need for a signing like Matheus Cunha, another player who can put the team on his back and perform to a high level week in, week out.
Nobody will be blaming Fernandes, and he still deserves the billing as a modern day legend, but he missed the chance to be an undisputed club hero.