Bruno Fernandes hits back at Jim Ratcliffe over ‘overpaid’ jibe

LONDON – Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes said it is not the players’ fault for the contracts signed off by the club, as he hit back at claims by minority shareholder Jim Ratcliffe that some are “overpaid”.

The Portuguese midfielder was singled out for praise by Ratcliffe, who also said some of the United squad were “not good enough” in a range of media interviews this week.

Fernandes led by example by scoring a hat-trick in the 4-1 win over Real Sociedad on March 13 to book a place in the quarter-finals of the Europa League.

And he defended his teammates after Ratcliffe singled out the signings of Casemiro, Rasmus Hojlund and Andre Onana as examples of expensive deals made before he arrived at the club.

“It’s not nice to hear certain things, obviously,” he said.

“I don’t think that any player likes to hear criticism... that you’re not good enough or you’re overpaid or whatever.

“Everyone has their own contract. The club agrees to do the contracts at the time you come here or at the time you do a new contract or whatever and it’s about yourself, proving that you can be important for the club.”

The Europa League is United’s only hope of salvaging a miserable season so far.

Ruben Amorim’s team sit 13th in the Premier League and are out of both domestic Cup competitions. They travel to Leicester City next on March 16.

Fernandes also revealed he had the chance to leave Old Trafford last summer but reiterated his desire to win more trophies as captain.

“I sat with the club because I had an offer to leave,” he added.

“We talked about the possibility of me leaving the club or staying. They said what they wanted from me. I just asked if they still see me as part of the future of the club or not. I spoke at the time with (former manager Erik) ten Hag also.

“He was very clear with me, the club was very clear with me, that they thought I would be a big part of this rebuild.”

But despite Fernandes’ return of 15 goals this season as United’s stand-out performer, he has still received criticism from one of his predecessors as the club’s captain.

Roy Keane claimed the 30-year-old was “not a fighter” and that “talent is not enough” in a recent media appearance.

Fernandes said the former Irish midfielder, who won 13 major trophies at United, is someone he “massively respects” and is hoping to change Keane’s mind.

He has backing from his manager, though.

Amorim has said his side “need more Brunos” if they are to rediscover their former glories.

Of Fernandes’ 15 goals this season, six have come in the last six games.

“I think he’s so important for this team. You can see it by the numbers, and you can see from these last games, he’s always the guy that scores,” said Amorim.

“When you play for this team, you have to be prepared for the critics and I understand that former players had a lot of success here and the standards for them were so high.

“Again, Bruno is always there, trying his best, so I’m really proud to coach a player like him.” AFP