The team's performance is not good, and naturally someone needs to come out and carry the pot. This is true of any club, and Manchester United is no exception. Solskjaer has been dismissed, and the "DNA coach" who was once favored by Manchester United fans can not escape the criticism of the world, not to mention Pogba, Martial and other lazy people. But compared with Pogba and Martial, who have been abandoned by fans, the decline of Bruno Fernandes, who was once the red devil's thigh, has made fans more puzzled by this season.
Indeed, compared to Pogba and Martial, B Fee should have performed at a level far beyond what it is today. On 29 January 2020, Manchester United, who were also mired in at the time, spent 63 million euros to bring in Bruno Fernandes from Portuguese sport. Judging from the situation at that time, although B Fei had played in the five major leagues, its highlight period mostly occurred in the Portuguese sports period, so when B Fei joined Manchester United, the real strength of the Portuguese international was still questioned by many fans.
However, after a short period of running-in, B Fei quickly conquered the fans with his brilliant performance. In the 19th and 20th seasons, facing the Premier League, which has always been difficult to adapt, B's cost-highlight performance quickly became the main force of the Red Devils, making 22 appearances for Manchester United in all competitions (including 21 starts), scoring 12 goals and 8 assists, and was the hero of Manchester United's final third place in the Premier League.
Entering the 20-21 season, B Fee's power remained undiminished, making 58 appearances for the Red Devils in all competitions (including 51 starts), scoring 28 goals and assisting 18 assists. Helping Manchester United win the Premier League runner-up, although he failed to qualify in the Champions League group stage, B Fee still led the Red Devils as the team's attacking core to advance to the final in the Europa League knockout round (and eventually lost to La Liga side Villarreal in the final).
Such a performance not only shocked the four sides in the Premier League, but also allowed Bruno Fernandez to quickly grow into one of the hottest attacking midfielders in European football.
As a midfielder, B Fee not only has good organizational scheduling ability, but its most striking feature is its strong scoring ability. Throughout B Fei's career, since the 17-18 season, his single-season goals have always been in double-double, of which the number of goals scored in a single season in the 18-19 season reached 31, and the number of goals scored in the single season in the 19-20 season reached 27. While scoring a large number of goals, B Fei's number of assists in a single season is also very impressive, the Portugal international has completed 15 assists in the 18-19 season and 22 assists in the 19-20 season. With such efficiency on the offensive end, it's no wonder that the B fee at the time has been frequently compared to the notorious superstar midfielders such as De Bruyne.
United have strengthened further on the offensive end this season, bringing back the team's historic striker Cristiano Ronaldo and spending a lot of money to buy England winger Sancho from Borussia Dortmund. With the addition of these two top attackers, the strength of the teammates around B Fei has been further enhanced, coupled with manchester United already has a number of elite players such as Cavani, Greenwood, Rashford and so on, the team seems to finally have the ability to attack the Premier League champions who have been absent for many years.
However, the ideal is always far from the reality. Manchester United, which invested heavily, did not usher in a jump in record, but instead disappeared on the road of record decline. Even in the context of the team's record has rebounded after Lonnick took office, Manchester United can still only rank 7th in the Premier League table (2 rounds of the minor round, four points behind 4th place Arsenal). There must be a reason for the bad record, Solskjaer carried this pot, but when Ole Gunnar Solskell left, Manchester United's record still did not improve significantly, so the fans naturally looked for a new backer - Fernandez.
This is not that the fans are unkind, if you compare the performance of B Fee this season with previous seasons, the decline in his competitive status is visible to the naked eye. So far, the Portugal international has made 23 appearances for United in all competitions this season, with 5 goals and 8 assists. From the performance of the offensive end alone, 5 goals and 8 assists can be regarded as a first-class level, but compared to B Fei's brilliant performance of 12 goals and 8 assists in 22 games of the Red Devils' first season, the speed of Bruno's state decline this season is indeed a bit jaw-dropping.
At the same time, considering that Bruno's performance on the offensive end relies on a large number of "abandonments" such as the loss of a large number of ball rights and even the forced acceleration of the attack, the substantial help it brings to Manchester United on the offensive end can only be described as lackluster.
Some people attribute B Fee's decline in form this season to changes in the tactical system, after all, with the addition of an emperor superstar like Cristiano Ronaldo to the team, United's overall attacking system is bound to be impossible to continue along the old ruts of last season. The overall tactical focus began to be biased towards Ronaldo, and B Fee did not seem to be fully integrated into the new tactical system, resulting in a series of struggles. There is no doubt that the change in the tactical system has affected Bruno's state to some extent, but it is obviously inaccurate to attribute the decline of Bruno's state to the change of the tactical system. If you want to explore the real reasons for the ups and downs of B-fee status, you must combine deeper data and even the actual situation of the game to see.
【Positioning of B Fee in Manchester United】
Even for a wealthy club like Manchester United, 63 million euros is still a big transfer fee, not to mention that this large sum of money is spent on a star who has not been able to prove himself in the five major leagues before. However, for Manchester United at that time, the B fee was definitely an indispensable part of the attacking system.
The comprehensive quality of the front line is not enough, the ability to create opportunities is insufficient, and the quality of the last blow is not good... Problems have plagued the Red Devils' coaching staff for a long time – Pogba's magical performance seems to be limited to the national team, Mata's creativity but obvious shortcomings, and the rest of the talent but no experience in big responsibilities. In such a background environment, Manchester United's record has fallen into an unprecedented low, and the addition of B Fee has become a key move to turn things around.
The frequency with which B Fee loses the ball in the course of attack is well known, but for the once confused Red Devils, giving up some of the ball, or even giving the opponent some counter-attack opportunities, is not enough to withstand an offensive midfielder with a strong last pass ability. It is on this basis that United tailored a set of attacking modes for Bruno, and the whole team created a one-foot opportunity for Bruno through a series of rapid scheduling transfers on the periphery, thus maximizing Bruno's advantage. This tactical mode, while simple, is the most direct way to play the traits of a certain star in a short period of time.
In this way, although there are still some flaws, B Fee's brilliant statistics last season seem to have proved his worth, as long as we follow the old path, United's record seems to be guaranteed. But the problem is that Manchester United's squad is not composed of offensive and defensive stability, compared to the luxurious offensive line, the overall defensive performance still has many flaws, if it were not for De Gea's repeated key moments as a savior, perhaps Manchester United's achievements this season would have further fallen into the abyss.
On the Red Devils' star-studded offensive line, there are also many problems - insufficient running on the offensive end. B Fee is not one of those midfielders known for their ability to break through with the ball, but a "metronome" that emphasizes the rhythm of the attack, he holds the ball on the field and pulls the space very little, needs 1 or 2 teammates to surround him, on the one hand, to help him pull out the pass space and cooperate with it in a small area, on the other hand, he needs to "wipe his ass" for some slightly aggressive but failed passes of B Fee.
In such a background environment, as the understanding of B fees by major teams in the Premier League gradually deepens, it is difficult for B fees to run without the ball and even to advance with the ball. In any case, being stuck in the 1-2 player staring limit has become a big problem that B fees have to face. The Portugal international is extremely threatening to pick up the ball and pass the ball with a certain amount of space, but it is difficult to take on the responsibility of organizing the core of the attack under high pressure. Therefore, B Fei's personal strength is difficult to support the team to construct a new set of tactical play, and the team needs to use the adjustment and shift of technical and tactical aspects to create a tactical system that can "fish in the water".
When Bruno's magical aura is broken, a series of drawbacks hidden behind his insoluble offensive play are gradually exposed. In the background environment of the overall sluggish performance of the team's midfield and the general poor performance of several players who are heavily relied on the offensive end, B Fei's performance has inevitably been impacted, and the rapid decline in competitive status has become an inevitable fact in the background environment where his personal ability has not yet completely turned the team's overall offensive and defensive situation.
In the 20th and 21st seasons, Bruno had 12 assists in the Premier League, ranking first among Manchester United and all players in the same position; he created a total of 20 excellent attacking opportunities, and could rank first among all players in the team and in the same position; in addition, Bruno averaged 2.6 key passes per game, which can rank second among all players in the same position; his average number of passes per game reached 57.1, which can rank first among all players.
By this season, Bruno's performances at the organisational end have declined, but he can still be at the top of the Premier League – he currently has 3 assists, ranking second among all players in the same position; he has created a total of 6 excellent scoring opportunities and can rank first among all players in the position; his average number of key passes per game has improved from the previous season, which can be ranked first among all players in the same position; and his average of 48.3 passes per game can be ranked second among all players.
It can also be seen from Bruno's performance on the offensive end last season and this season that although its overall performance has declined significantly, it is still at least in the first-class level from the data point of view.
But whether it was a brilliant performance last season or a season of declining form, B Fee's more general pass success rate (especially the front pass success rate) laid the groundwork for his current state decline - last season, B Fee created a series of gorgeous statistics, its average pass success rate per game was only 78%, only 21 of all players in the same position; its average front pass success rate was only 71%, ranking only 19th among all players in the same position.
By this season, this data is still sluggish, and there is a significant decline from the previous season - its average pass success rate is only 76% per game, and its average front-game pass success rate is only 68%. B Fee has an extremely high average of passes per game and direct attempts, but considering that his offensive attempts need to rely on a large number of missed passes, it not only gives the opponent a series of opportunities to counterattack, but also makes it difficult for B Fee to show the same threatening ball passing ability and front goal efficiency as last season in the background environment where the passing space is oppressed.
[A dynasty of heaven and a courtier, the system that B Fei is familiar with is gone]
After taking office, Lonnick played a 4222 formation, and his tactical model has similarities with that of the Ole Gunnar Solskjaer period, but overall it is still biased towards the brand of German football, which is far from the admiration of solskjaer. From a more specific point of view, Lonnick's tactical label can be understood as "the position of the premise of the offensive core, the increase in the number of grab points for the no-ball interspersed strategy in the middle, the emphasis on the ability to run without the ball and finish on the midline", etc., this set of tactical models has made Ronnick famous in German football. Now that he has brought this tactical system into the Theater of Dreams, it means that B Fee has to break away from the comfort zone that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has tailored for him and embark on the road of transformation.
In solskjaer's later period, the dependence on B fees was visible to the naked eye. Its core point is not only to see Bruno as the core of an organizational transfer, but also to further presuppose his tactical position, giving him a large number of forward insertions to participate in the attack to form the privilege of shooting, this series of tactics is what we often call "midfield forward".
Today, Lonnick's positioning for Bruno has changed, the German coach has emphasized the withdrawal of the front waist, and Bruno's area of activity on the field has been significantly retreated compared to the Ole Gunnar Solskjaer era. But given Bruno's more general ball-holding and passing accuracy, he has not yet been able to fully adapt to the tactical system of forward pullback, and being away from goal has significantly reduced the number of shots on goal (from an average of 3.3 per game last season to an average of 2.3 per game this season), and the number of goals has naturally declined.
When there is plenty of space, B Fee's threatening ball passing ability is worth looking forward to
Of course, we can't completely deny Bruno's effectiveness under the tactical system of the forward retreat, Lonnick gave up the number of times B Fee participated in the attack in the opponent's penalty area to complete the shot, and also developed B Fee's other advantages - such as long passes, articulation. Manchester United's top long pass has long been dominated by Pogba, but now the France international is in doubtful form and has a poor attitude, and his long pass stats have fallen behind Bruno. B Fee has achieved a 69% success rate in creative long passes this season and is in the top 4 in both premier and European competitions.
B Fee's retraction can find an effective connection point between the back and the forward, further draw the opponent's defensive attention to the back of the midfield, and then use its one-foot shooting ability to quickly penetrate the opponent's defensive encirclement, handing the ball over to Sancho and other assault hands and feet that need to break through space.
Let's take the goal of Manchester United equalising against Newcastle as an example. B Fei's position has been far away from the opponent's defensive hinterland, but its strong offensive ability makes the opposing defenders deeply jealous, so they have to move the defensive front as a whole to limit B Fee's turning space. However, considering that Bruno has a strong long pass ability, even in the case of a half turn, he can still quickly complete the long pass split dispatch, laying a solid foundation for the final goal in this rapid bottom cross.
【Conclusion】
All in all, the use of B fees can be described as a double-edged sword. On the one hand, the Portuguese midfielder has a strong offensive ability and superb forward passing skills that the world envies. But on the other hand, its flamboyant offensive stats need to be built on a large number of missteps, which in turn puts the team's defensive stability to the test. But in any case, the "lubricating oil" effect of B fees on the attacking end of Manchester United has long been proven in the Premier League. In the background environment of having a powerful goal machine like Ronaldo, B Fee should not only become the background board behind the big brother of the national team, but should have the courage to take the posture of being the core of the attack, adapt to the tactical changes of Manchester United, and get out of today's bad state.