Is Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes’ position an issue for Ruben Amorim? Stats tell a different story

There has been some doom and gloom around Manchester United’s form this season, with two wins in five so far, but if you dig deeper, some of their stats tell a surprising story.

For example, ahead of Saturday’s 12:30pm kick off against Brentford, which is live on TNT Sports 1, we can observe that:

• They have scored six goals so far this season, with only seven teams having scored fewer.
• But they have an expected goals total of 9.7. No team in the entire division has a higher figure.
• That means they have a goals-minus-expected-goals figure of -3.7, the lowest in the league. I.e. no team is underperforming their expected goals this season more so than United
• They have also taken the most shots in the league.

Manchester United are creating lots of chances but are struggling to convert them. A worrying pattern.

Bruno Fernandes illustrates that more than anyone. Below is how he ranks in scoring and creative stats this season at United and in the Premier League.

The Red Devils have worked hard to revamp their attacking unit, but they still cannot get away from their dependence on Bruno. ‘Brunodependencia’, if you will. He is incredibly important for them and is still one of the best creative forces in the Premier League.

The interesting thing about Fernandes this season is where he has been playing. Last season, he played more as one of the No. 10s (albeit not exclusively) in manager Ruben Amorim’s 3-4-2-1 system, this season he has played entirely as one of the two deep midfielders.

This is in part to allow Amorim to fit all his attackers into the team, but there has also been an argument in the past that Fernandes might thrive if he was allowed to see the whole pitch.

The numbers suggest that he is indeed thriving. Despite playing deeper, Fernandes is still dominant both for shots and for creative actions, both for United and compared to other Premier League players.

However, because of United’s mixed results, some have wondered whether he needs to be brought back higher up the pitch. After all, this is a player who has scored 64 goals in the Premier League, despite being a midfielder. He has a rare ability for finding the back of the net.

“When I started my career, I was a No. 10 and was later brought back to that No. 6 position after getting a better understanding of the game. In that role, it’s all about short and sharp movements, reading the game and anticipating things that is going on in front of you.

“It’s also key to have good communication with the backline and these are different qualities compared to playing as a No. 10, where you’re thinking about the press, moving yourself into half spaces and linking up with the forward players.

“There’s also the risk and reward factor, because when you’re playing in a higher position, you can take more risks with the type of passes you play, but when you’re trying to break the line in those deeper areas, that is much harder.

“When I played as a No. 10 and had someone running off my shoulder, I knew I had my team-mates backing me up to cover, but when you have that situation when playing in a deeper role, before you know it, you’re drawn to the ball, and you miss your runner and the ball is in the back of the net.”

Williams is one of the greatest creative players England have ever produced, and she feels, too, that Fernandes should return to a more advanced role. But the numbers arguably paint a different picture. Fernandes is playing so well that it could potentially be too much of a knee-jerk reaction to move him out of the deep role.

Manchester United spent a lot of money this summer to bolster their attack. Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Sesko have not just forgotten how to score goals; at least one of them will likely come good. The numbers tell us that Fernandes and the rest of the team are creating.

Put it this way: per our friends at Opta, only one player this season is underperforming their expected assists in the Premier League more than Fernandes, and that is Mbeumo. And per FBref, Manchester United have made 145 shot-creating actions so far this season: that is the most in the Premier League and 19 more than the next-highest team, Liverpool.

Clearly, the numbers suggest that the patterns Amorim’s system is trying to create are working for the most part. There are signs that this could be quite a potent attack once it all clicks. Maybe not perfect, but certainly better than 11th in the Premier League. It is understandable, though, after everything that has happened over the past few years, that fans are already hitting the panic button. They have been hurt before.

But despite this, United and Amorim may want to resist moving Fernandes; they have to stay patient and trust that the changes they have made will come good. If their forwards can start putting more chances away, suddenly Amorim will have a way to keep some combination of Mbeumo, Cunha, Sesko and Amad Diallo in the team, as well as Fernandes.

Perhaps later in the season if this trend continues, this is something Amorim will have to look at, but for now it feels as though United need to trust that their goalscorers will turn this around, and that Fernandes is functioning in his current role.