Bruno Fernandes snub proves he's doing the right things at Manchester United

There was a time when Bruno Fernandes was only about the goals and the assists. It certainly wasn't a bad thing, either. He arrived at Manchester United at their time of need and completely transformed the team with his immense attacking output.

Fernandes netted 12 goals in his first 22 appearances for the club, claiming the club's Player of the Season award despite only playing for half of the season. He'd win it again the following campaign after an astronomical 28 goals from midfield, as well as 17 assists.

Last season was one to forget for both Fernandes and United. It says so much about the standards he has set that only managing 10 goals and 14 assists was seen as a significant drop-off. In a way, it was.

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The issue is that the success of his performances was frequently determined by whether he contributed a goal or not. The discussion around him was focused too heavily on what he did in front of goal, and he was too focused on it too, often adopting a selfish approach as he acted like a one-man army to win matches on his own.

It meant there were genuine concerns about Fernandes' long-term role under Erik ten Hag this season and, at first, he did look like an awkward fit, but then so did the rest of the team. Yet as they began to settle under their new manager, Fernandes began to thrive alongside fellow midfield mastermind Christian Eriksen.

There were signs of things to come, and the arrival of Casemiro proved to be the final piece of the jigsaw in establishing a midfield trio of intelligent footballers who are all on the same wavelength. United have yet to lose a match in which all three have started together.

The success of Eriksen and Casemiro