Around 50 per cent of Fantasy Premier League users have Bruno Fernandes in their teams for the new season. Fernandes broke the Premier League assist record last term, creating 21 goals for his teammates, and United have a kind start to the campaign, making him a must-have asset for millions of fantasy players.
Those who think Fernandes is guaranteed to make a hot start to the new season may be mistaken, though. It is almost blasphemous to suggest Fernandes might not be at his best at the start of the season, but there were signs during the World Cup that a long campaign had caught up to him, and that he is human after all.
World Cup and pre-season concerns
Fernandes performed well below his high standards and recorded a single assist - against Uzbekistan - during the tournament. It was a brilliant pass, the kind he made so often last season, but it was just one moment.
Portugal were narrowly beaten by Spain in the Round of 16. It is no embarrassment to be knocked out by the eventual winners, but it was seen as another disappointing appearance at a major tournament for Portugal. Fernandes was playing so well that it felt possible he could single-handedly drag Portugal deep into the tournament, but a dip in his form, combined with Roberto Martinez's inexplicable failure to see that starting Cristiano Ronaldo was detrimental to the team, meant they flattered to deceive.
"Sad, frustrated, and disappointed," Fernandes posted on social media. He enjoyed a three-week break with his family in his homeland to recover from the mental and physical exertion of the season, but now he must go again.
Fernandes' second appearance of pre-season against Leeds suggested he had picked up where he had left off. He was introduced on the hour mark and was only denied a superb goal by the offside flag, although he did uncharacteristically send a penalty wide during the shootout after the draw.
It felt inevitable that Fernandes would make amends from the spot when United were awarded a penalty against AC Milan last weekend. He is usually so reliable, but on this occasion, his penalty was saved by the goalkeeper.
Slow start last season
Is looking tired at the World Cup and missing two penalties during pre-season enough to suggest that he could make a slow start to the new campaign? It does not make for a compelling argument, though the case begins to stack up when Fernandes' start to last season is taken into account.
Fernandes scored two goals in the first eight games of 2025/26. The first was a penalty against Burnley, and the second was a tap-in against Chelsea. Those were his only goal involvements until after the October international break. The context is important: Fernandes was playing in a deeper midfield role in Ruben Amorim's system, but there was a warranted conversation about whether he was playing at his best.
Fernandes delivered in spades across the remainder of the campaign, beating the assist record which had been held jointly by Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne, and winning the Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year award, but he did take a few weeks to get into the groove at the start of the season.
What to expect this season
Those reasons are enough to suggest Fernandes may not set the world alight in the opening weeks of the campaign. He will probably make a fool of that argument, especially considering Hull and Ipswich Town are United's first two games, but it is something to keep in mind.
Fernandes has been incredibly consistent since he signed from Sporting Lisbon six years ago, but it was a summer to forget for the Portugal international and he started only one game in pre-season due to his late return following the World Cup. So it would not be a complete shock if Fernandes needed a few weeks to get going again.
