Bruno Fernandes, an attacking midfielder for Manchester United, will not be available for Sunday's match against Aston Villa at Villa Park. However, Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has downplayed the significance of this loss.
The Portugal international, who has been leading the team for much of this season in the absence of Harry Maguire, will not be able to make the trip to the Midlands because he was given a suspension before the game. During the latter stages of the team's 1-0 victory over West Ham United the previous week, he received his fifth booking of the campaign, which results in a suspension for one game. Fernandes, who was previously with Sporting Lisbon before joining United in January 2020, has started all but one of United's games across all competitions this year, and he has played every minute of the Premier League so far. Even though he has not been playing at his most fluid level this season, it is likely that his absence in the attacking-midfield position will be felt.
United have a good crop of midfielders available to them to come in and replace the former Sporting star, but it remains to be seen what Ten Hag will choose to do, given that this is the first time in Ten Hag's premiership career that he has been unable to call upon the 28-year-old player. However, the Dutchman, while acknowledging that there will be a loss as a result of his absence, has emphasized the significance of having a strong pool of players from which to choose.
Ten Hag was quoted as saying on United's club website that "yes, until now, Bruno is so important for us." "He consistently plays very well across all of his matches.
"I believe that he made an impact even when he was playing on the right side of the field yesterday [against Real Sociedad]. He was playing in that position. You can see this, for example, with the target, in addition to some other actions.
"That's the squad, and he's doing a really good job for us as the No. 10 position, but we have to find someone to replace him. Therefore, you need a squad, it's not about 11 players, you need a squad to win in a season, and now we need to replace him and we will do so. Winning in a season requires a squad, and it's not about 11 players."In the meantime, it is possible that Jadon Sancho, Anthony Martial, and Antony will not travel with United to Villa Park because of injuries. The three players were sidelined during the midweek victory over Real Sociedad due to various ailments and injuries, respectively.
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