Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s former right-hand man has insisted that one Manchester United star “will be the first one” thinking how he can “improve personally.”
Mike Phelan was assistant manager under Sir Alex Ferguson towards the tail end of the legendary former Manchester United head coach’s managerial career.
The 62-year-old coach oversaw incredible success under Sir Alex Ferguson’s reign after he became assistant manager in 2008 following Carlos Queiroz’s departure.
Phelan, who was previously a first-team coach at United, would leave Old Trafford in 2013 after ex-United manager David Moyes didn’t retain him for his coaching staff.
The former United first-team coach made his sensational return to the Old Trafford dugout after he took up the assistant manager role under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Man Utd star’s struggles at Old Trafford
Mike Phelan was at Old Trafford when former Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer completed the signing of Bruno Fernandes in 2020.
The Red Devils landed Bruno Fernandes for an initial fee of £47m from Sporting CP, with the Portuguese midfielder making a sensational impact in the first team.
Fernandes has been a key player at United and the Portugal international has made 244 appearances for the Red Devils since his arrival at Old Trafford.
Erik ten Hag, who was Solskjaer’s permanent successor, even appointed Fernandes as United captain after Harry Maguire was stripped of the club captaincy in 2023.
However, Fernandes has struggled in the early stages of the 2024-25 campaign and has failed to score once in 11 matches across all competitions this season.
The United captain, who has four assists this season, also received back-to-back red cards in the 3-0 defeat to Tottenham at Old Trafford and 3-3 draw against Porto.
Phelan on Man Utd star Fernandes
Speaking on talkSPORT, former United assistant manager Phelan spoke out on Fernandes’ form and backed the Portugal midfielder to turn things around.
“He has been consistently producing,” he said.
“He is just going through probably a moment now where he needs a little bit of help himself. You can’t always give help to other people.
“He needs a little bit of help himself. And I think also taking into consideration the game he has played, it has been non-stop now for, I don’t know how many years, three, four years, I don’t know how long it is, both internationally and club level, and there are times when players are little bit off it.
“He has set himself a high standard of delivery. It’s just not working out for him now.
“I am sure he will be the first one to be thinking how he can improve personally, but also as a captain, he will be thinking how he can improve the team, the group.
“He never shies away from his responsibility, but right now, he is just another player in that group of players that is not finding the true potential.”
from United In Focus https://ift.tt/18NtSOx