Fernandes: I'll set standard in chase for titles

United's new captain vows to lead on all fronts next season

- SAMUEL LUCKHURST

RATHER than have two plane loads of United players travel to the United States, the internationals in Carrington flew to Edinburgh and waited on the runway for their teammates who had just played against Lyon at Murrayfield on Wednesday afternoon.

There was a captain in the cockpit but not in the United squad. Harry Maguire had been stripped of the armband and Erik ten Hag had not appointed his replacement yet.

At a team meeting on Thursday morning, Ten Hag assembled the entire United squad and let out the worst-kept secret: Bruno Fernandes was the new official captain.

When Fernandes first skippered United against Paris Saint-Germain in October 2020, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer cheerfully announced it at a pre-match press conference and Fernandes, sat next to his manager, was visibly surprised. The only surprise on this occasion would have been if the captaincy went to someone other than Fernandes.

"He spoke in front of the whole group," Fernandes says on the running track of the Temares Family Stadium at Pingry School in New Jersey ahead of a morning training session. "He wanted do it in front of everyone. Everyone knew already about the situation with H but no one knew who would be the next captain. So he did it in a team meeting with everyone together because it's something we have to do more often, to keep the things inside and give the compliments inside to ourselves."

Maguire has handled his demotion professionally and was magnanimous. "He (Maguire) gave me congratulations and he said he is really happy for me," Fernandes explains.