Bruno Fernandes showed why he's captain material for Manchester United with a brilliant post-match gesture towards teammate Marcus Rashford.
The Red Devils duo both scored as United beat bitter rivals Manchester City 2-1 in an epic comeback victory on Saturday, and it was Rashford who grabbed the all-important winner in the dying embers. Fernandes had also stuck to draw Erik ten Hag 's side level four minutes prior - and claimed the Player of the Match award, but he unselfishly wanted to direct the plaudits to his in-form teammate after the full-time whistle.
As the players made their way back to the Old Trafford dressing room in front of a rocking Stretford End, Rashford and his skipper were last off the pitch. Spotting an opportunity for roaring fans to heap praise on his pal, Fernandes pushed the England star in front of him and pointed at Rashford, who's enjoying a stellar campaign with 16 goals to his name.
It was a moment that supporters instantly latched onto, with the Portuguese earning more shouts to be the Red Devils' captain on a permanent basis. "Bruno, my captain," one fan wrote on Twitter. "What a captain we've got in Bruno Fernandes," another excitable supporter added.
Fernandes has been sporting the armband for much of this season in the absence of club captain Harry Maguire, who's struggled for game-time under Ten Hag. The new United manager has trusted Fernandes with the responsibility and the player's comments to BT Sport after the game also speak volumes about his leadership qualities.
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"I said it before the game to the team: 'We look like a team now'," the 28-year-old declared, having signed for the Red Devils three years go under former boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. "Some time ago, you could see sometimes [we were a team], sometimes each one of us was looking for ourselves. Now you see a proper team that works hard for each other and you see that it pays [off]."
Fernandes added: "The manager said before the game, it doesn't matter about the opening, the most important thing is winning it. It was an amazing comeback and great effort from the team."
The ex- Sporting Lisbon star's kinds words may well have had something to do his fellow attacker lending a hand in his equalising goal. Fernandes was able to make it 1-1 after Rashford wisely allowed the ball run past him following a defence-splitting pass from midfield general Casemiro, as the Englishman was in an offside position and City's bemused defenders expected the flag to be raised.
As the law backed up, however, Rashford's decision not to touch the ball meant that the move could continue and Fernandes lashed home to start the comeback. "Because I was facing the goal, Marcus probably saw that I was in a better position," the Portugal international went on to explain.
"I didn't know if any one of us was offside or not. The only [defender] close was the defender close to me, so it is what it is. It's a goal at the end, we're really happy for that."
United's win made it 10 successive victories on home turf, but now they face back-to-back away games this week against struggling Crystal Palace and Premier League leaders Arsenal.
