“The small things …” Fernandes spills the mind-blowing secrets behind his assist-making mastery

Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has revealed the method to his assist-making brilliance. Assist king Since joining United from Sporting CP in 2020, Fernandes has become England’s most creative player and one of Europe’s finest. He has consistently topped the chance creation charts and has recorded double-digit assists in every single season at United. This campaign has been no different for the Portugal international. With seven games left to play, he boasts an impressive 16 assists. Last month, he broke David Beckham’s record to become the player with the most assists in a single Premier League season in United’s history. Fernandes revealed that Beckham personally reached out to him to offer his congratulations. Fernandes is now eyeing the Premier League record (20), which is jointly held by Kevin De Bruyne and Thierry Henry. The United playmaker spoke to The Telegraph and described coming up against De Bruyne as a “privilege.” He also explained the art behind his creative genius. Fernandes spills beans Asked what he sees when he plays, Fernandes answered, “In my head it’s already an image of what we’ve worked on during the week. The most difficult part is that you have to react, but also adapt your idea for the player you have ahead of you.” He clarified, “I can’t play the same ball to Amad [Diallo] that I played to [Benjamin] Sesko. I can’t play the same ball to Sesko that I played to Bryan [Mbeumo]. Then it’s on me to read where I can make the most of it for them because I could give any pass to them and probably wouldn’t get anything from it. But I try always to give the best one for the qualities of the players.” “For example, with Bryan I know he’s going to be most of the time on the edge of the last line trying to get the ball in behind, trying to slide him through on goal.” “With Ben it’s kind of the same. But I also know when I’m on the ‘half spaces’, he likes crosses, he likes to attack the ball because he can jump very high.” He continued, “Then with Amad and [Matheus] Cunha it’s getting to connect with them, one-twos or make the space as big as possible and then give them the ball on a one-v-one to go and break their defence because they’re very direct. Then if I play with Josh [Zirkzee] I know he’s like everything I’ve learnt in Italy of playing close to him, let the ball go to him, get around him, play one-twos, just little touches around the corner.” “These are the small things I used to see Torino doing when I was there with Maxi López, Ciro Immobile. Without sometimes even touching the ball they get into the goal. So, with Josh I know it’s this kind of connection.” “If Mason [Mount] plays as a left winger I know I need to go more and support him and he likes one-twos, he’s very sharp in this kind of situation. So I need to find a way of being connected with him and getting the space for him to shoot, the space for him to do the last pass because the qualities of Mason, he becomes the best when he has space… this is the thing you have to read in a split second.” On playing safe, he told the newspaper, “It’s risk-reward. The risk will always be there in any pass but it’s how much reward can I get from this. When I try a pass behind their lines, my risk is that the ball goes out or it goes to the keeper because I always try to miss more than miss less.” “I don’t know how to explain it properly because if it’s short, maybe the defender has it and my guy is running behind and then they’re going to go on the counter.” “So I always try to miss for more. I try to get the best pass but if I miss I know the ball goes out and they have no chance to counter. But the reward is I know if the pass is the one, Bryan’s going to score, Amad’s going to score, Matheus, Mason, Josh. All of them. And if they don’t score, we’ve created something.” “So, they [the opposition] are going to be more wary.” Fernandes and United return to action on Monday when they host historic rivals Leeds United at Old Trafford. Featured image by Michael Regan/Getty Images The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Derick Kinoti Derick Kinoti is a football writer at The Peoples Person who has covered Manchester United and the Premier League extensively for years. His work blends sharp analysis, tactical insight, and engaging storytelling that resonates with fans around the world. Derick has gained valuable experience in football journalism, developing strong expertise in SEO writing, digital content creation, and social media engagement. A tech enthusiast with a Computer Science degree from the University of Nairobi, he ultimately swapped code for football commentary, bringing an analytical, detail-oriented approach to his writing. Derick is convinced Wayne Rooney is the true GOAT and won’t hear otherwise!