Bruno Fernandes explains why he let Cristiano Ronaldo score Manchester United’s winning penalty over Arsenal on matchday 14 at Old Trafford.
United rose to seventh in the Premier League table with a much-needed 3-2 home win over the Gunners, in which Fernandes scored the Reds’ first goal before Ronaldo scored twice.
Ronaldo’s second goal came from position as he carried out penalty duty against Fernandes, who admitted that the pair had not discussed a change ahead of time.
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The Portuguese midfielder said he was happy to hand over the responsibility to his compatriot later missed his last attempt in United’s 0-1 loss to Aston Villa on September 25th.
Fernandes told BBC Sport after the game: “We didn’t talk to each other. “It was time for Cristiano to take the penalty because I took the last one and missed it. It doesn’t matter who gets the penalty.”
Ronaldo has surpassed 800 career goals with a brace against the Gunners, bringing his tally since returning to United to 12 in 16 appearances.
Fernandes is also amazed at how the 36-year-old continues to age defiantly with his performances: “It’s amazing,” Fernandes told Amazon Prime Video. “We all know he’s improving game by game, year by year. He wants to continue to be the best, and that’s what he did. He knows how to motivate himself.”
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Fernandes discusses Rangnick, Carrick
Fernandes also expressed excitement at the appointment of Ralf Rangnick as United’s new caretaker manager, with the German now officially at Old Trafford until the end of the season.
“Now is a new beginning and a new beginning,” he said. “Everybody is looking forward to working with a new coach. When a new person arrives there are new opportunities. Everyone has a chance to get a position.
“Everybody has to work hard to have a chance to make it to the first batch. We’ll see him [Friday] and start working on the next game. “
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Fernandes went on to pay tribute to outgoing caretaker boss Michael Carrick, who has announced he will also step down as first-team coach following Arsenal’s win.
“He can become a top coach in the future if given the opportunity,” the 27-year-old said. “He knows how to speak, he knows a lot about football.”
