Erik ten Hag has hailed Bruno Fernandes as a ‘great inspiration’ after the midfielder was named as Manchester United’s new captain.
Ten Hag has made the decision to change captain ahead of the upcoming campaign, replacing Harry Maguire with the Portugal midfielder. The decision comes after Maguire struggled for regular first-team football last season and Ten Hag has opened up on his choice, praising Fernandes’ qualities as a leader.
“A good team is always covering areas as leaders, team players, multi-functional players, specialists, individualists,” Ten Hag told club’s official website.
“But you need some leaders in the team, on the pitch, who are guiding the team, who are building the team, who are controlling the quality of the performance.
“And one has to wear the [arm]band and we chose, I chose, Bruno because he is a great inspiration. He is the example.
“He always wants to be a better football player, working very hard to give his maximum performance. So he is the mirror for many players and he is a good social connector.
“He is also very good at game understanding. So, for a manager, it’s very good to have that intermediary on the pitch. So those are some reasons, but he can’t do it alone.
“We need more help. We need more leaders to have a strong bond and who can point a team in the right direction.”
