Michael Carrick, the Manchester United head coach, and Bruno Fernandes, the club captain, held clear the air talks at the Carrington training ground on Tuesday. The meeting followed the Portuguese midfielder’s omission from the team for Sunday’s 3-0 home loss to Bournemouth.
Fernandes had remained an unused substitute throughout that match. Carrick left him out after the captain publicly questioned the team’s tactics following the earlier 4-1 Champions League defeat to Como. After that game Fernandes said, “It’s a decision from the staff to not press man-to-man and sometimes leave space behind and try to get the ball.” He added that decisions on tactics rested with the manager and staff.
Carrick later described the decision to drop Fernandes as pure football. He told reporters, “Picking the team is always a difficult decision. We’ve got to make what we feel is the right one for the team to try to get the performance we want.” Meanwhile, sources confirmed the pair spoke privately at the training ground to address the issues.
In addition, Carrick held a wider meeting with the squad and staff. Both sides expressed a commitment to improve results. Fernandes is now expected to feature in Saturday’s Premier League match against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
The Bournemouth result left United in 16th place in the Premier League table. The club board decided Carrick would continue in charge despite the poor form. Consequently, attention now turns to the Chelsea fixture as the team seeks to end its winless run.
