‘He would benefit most’ – Rio Ferdinand insists Bruno Fernandes should be new Man Utd captain after Liverpool performance

Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand insists Bruno Fernandes would benefit from taking the captain’s armband.

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With Harry Maguire dropped to the bench, Fernandes led United out for Monday’s Premier League clash against arch-rivals Liverpool.

After a disastrous start to the season, Erik ten Hag’s side turned in a much-improved performance to seal a 2-1 victory in front of a rocking Old Trafford.

With Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez impressing at the heart of defence, it raises the question of when Maguire will return to the side with the England international also the subject of an approach from Chelsea.

And while the centre-half has often struggled with the weight of being club captain, Ferdinand believes Fernandes will use it to return to his best form on a consistent basis.

I think I’d stick with who we’ve got at the moment, he looks like he [Fernandes] feeds off that responsibility,’ Ferdinand told Vibe.

‘Bruno has an ego and wants to be the main man. When Cristiano comes in there is no discussing who the main man is. There’s no disguising he’s the main man, regardless of who you are, what you’ve done.

‘I think when Bruno came here he was the main man, a cult figure because of his performances and goals and that was kind of put in the shadows when Cristiano Ronaldo came. He’s come off the levels as much as anyone because he was hitting such high levels.

‘Listen, the levels he was hitting he couldn’t continue that because it was ridiculous what he was doing, the output. But to drop off from where he was, he would benefit the most from getting the armband.’

Alongside Maguire and Luke Shaw, Cristiano Ronaldo was also named among the subs with Marcus Rashford, Anthony Elanga,