Bruno Fernandes names 3 players who have made a massive difference in the Manchester United dressing room

Manchester United midfielder Bruno Fernandes has heaped praise on the defensive triumvirate of Casemiro, Raphael Varane, and Lisandro Martinez.

The trio have strongly impacted the Red Devils' dressing room, and club vice-captain Fernandes has hailed their efforts.

Speaking to Rio Ferdinand on BT Sport (via Manchester Evening News), the attacking playmaker discussed how important Casemiro is to United:

"Obviously he [Casemiro] is a player that can find the passes and at the same time cover a lot of space in behind. He gives you the freedom to go higher and take more risks, to make runs into the box because you know you'll be covered by him."

Fernandes continued:

"But at the same time he's adding goals and assists being in the right positions, he has a great mentality, even if he doesn't speak English very well he can talk to people in a football way and help everyone. He's been a really good part for us and improved our team."

The Portuguese playmaker revealed that Casemiro has also improved other midfielders at Manchester United:

"More than that he improved everyone who plays in that position because it makes you want to push yourself a little bit more and having Casemiro who has won many big trophies with Real Madrid makes you understand there's still a long way to go."

He then went on to praise Manchester United defenders Varane and Martinez, comparing their influence to Casemiro's, while hailing their leadership qualities:

"His desire and passion is there as you see with Licha [Martinez]. Rapha [Varane] is a little bit more calm but still a big voice in the dressing room. He’s someone you can rely on but when he has to talk and do his part he does really well."

He added:

"They’re a big part of how we've been improving because we have more leadership in the group, more people who are not afraid to tell people things when they have to because sometimes it can be seen in the wrong way. Sometimes you need to shout at your teammates because it's the way football is and to push them to be at their best version you need to do that."

Casemiro and Martinez joined Manchester United from Real Madrid and Ajax respectively last summer. Varane, meanwhile, joined the club in 2021 from Los Blancos.

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Manchester United are set to face Barcelona in the Europa League

The first-leg battle at the Spotify Camp Nou in the UEFA Europa League clash between Manchester United and Barcelona ended in a nail-biting 2-2 draw.

Marcos Alonso struck first for Barca in the first leg of the Round of 32 game. However, Marcus Rashford stole the show by netting one and setting up an own-goal by Jules Kounde to give Manchester United the lead.

Despite the heroics of David de Gea in goal, Raphinha eventually managed to break through and find the back of the net, with the game ending in a draw.

The two sides will now clash at Old Trafford on February 23. The pressure is on both sides to come out all guns blazing and secure a crucial victory.