Parker is not the first ex-United full-back to deliver that assessment of Fernandes. Patrice Evra, another title winner with the Red Devils, has also told GOAL: “It’s always sensitive to talk about Bruno. It depends what people call a real captain. With a captain, sometimes you can have someone like Roy Keane or a different one. Bruno is giving assists and scoring goals, this has never been the issue. The issue for me is for him to control the team and the tempo when he gets the ball.
“You couldn't tell me where he's playing because he's everywhere. So sometimes maybe as a captain, you want to do extra, you want to do too much. And at the end, you're not even at your right position. But United wouldn't be where they are in the table if Bruno wasn't playing.”
Evra added on Fernandes’ role as skipper: “I don't question the fact about Bruno being a captain - he deserves to be captain because [Ruben] Amorim has chosen him. Look at what's happening to [Harry] Maguire. They got rid of the armband and he now plays like a United player. You saw how people were bullying him on social media or whatever. But he said, I'm staying here.”