"You don’t fancy going to Anfield" - Michael Owen suggests Bruno Fernandes got suspended on purpose to avoid Liverpool clash
Former Manchester United forward Michael Owen has suggested that Bruno Fernandes picked up a booking on purpose in the 3-0 loss against Bournemouth on Saturday (December 9).
The Portugal international's fifth yellow card of the season means that he will miss the Red Devils' next Premier League match against Liverpool at Anfield (December 17).
With his side 3-0 down at the time, Fernandes was booked in the 84th minute for complaining to the referee Peter Bankes. Addressing the incident, Owen told Premier League Productions (via Mirror):
"I wonder how many yellow cards he’s had for dissent and waving his arms about. Possibly you don’t fancy going to Anfield. I wouldn’t at the moment. I’m not sure you’re thinking of the next game when you’re in the thick of playing."
Manchester United face a daunting task next weekend when they take on a Liverpool side who have won three Premier League matches in a row.
On Fernandes, Owen added:
"He should be responsible, he should be a good ambassador, a leader for the team. We all know referees are clamping down on that and he gets booked an awful lot for a player who hardly puts his foot in and tackles really he gets booked an awful lot."
The midfielder's absence will certainly be a huge loss for Erik ten Hag. So far this season, Bruno Fernandes has scored five goals and assisted five from 22 appearances across competitions.
Following this result, the Red Devils remain sixth in the Premier League standings, having racked up 27 points from 16 matches.
Bruno Fernandes reacts to Manchester United's 3-0 loss to Bournemouth
Manchester United midfielder Bruno Fernandes claimed that the Red Devils underperformed in the 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth at Old Trafford. Erik ten Hag's side conceded within five minutes to Dominic Solanke's close-range effort.
The Cherries then went on to double their lead in the second half through Philip Billing in the 68th minute. Marcos Senesi added a third five minutes later to round off the scoring.
Addressing his side's performance after the match, Fernandes said (via Mirror):
"Everything was underperforming. Creativity, movement and arriving with bodies into the box. Today, it was, as I said, underperforming. We just lack consistency and that's a big part of football. It's really important to be consistent every game and we're not being."
In this fixture, Manchester United dominated the ball, keeping 69% possession. They attempted 20 shots but found the target just thrice. Meanwhile, Bournemouth managed to test Andre Onana four times and found the net thrice from 10 attempts.