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Erik ten Hag explains why he selected Bruno Fernandes as new Man United captain.
The decision to choose Bruno Fernandes as the new club captain of Manchester United, made by manager Erik ten Hag, was explained.
The armband was taken away from Maguire last Sunday, and we later learned that Ten Hag had told him he had the option of leaving the team entirely. Maguire confirmed this in a statement. After Wesley Fofana had an ACL injury, Chelsea thought about making a trade.
Thursday saw United make the announcement that Fernandes will be elevated from his position as vice-captain to full-time captain.
Ten Hag has now explained to club media the reasoning behind choosing Fernandes to take over as his new captain.
“I chose Bruno because he is a great inspiration. He is the example, always wants to be a better football player, working very hard to give his maximum performance,” Ten Hag said.
“So he is the mirror for many players and he is a good social connector. He is also very good in game understanding. So for a manager, it’s very good to have that integrated on the pitch. They are some reasons.
“But he can’t do it alone. We need more, we need more leaders to have the strong bond who can point the team, who give [for] the team and send them in the right direction.”
Ten Hag referenced Fernandes needing to be supported in his role by his teammates, and the Manchester Evening News report that the Portugal midfielder will form part of a six-player leadership group.
The other players in that group will be Casemiro, Luke Shaw, Marcus Rashford, Raphael Varane and Tom Heaton.