Bruno Fernandes is a combination of the best qualities of Manchester United legends

Manchester United's Portuguese Magnifico, Bruno Fernandes' arrived at a time of disarray at the club. They had just lost to fellow Lancashire side Burnley at Old Trafford and Ole Gunnar Solksjaer's position seemed untenable.

Since that pivotal moment though, United have not tasted defeat in 14 Premier League matches, accumulating a league-high 32 points and playing an expansive style of football most fans have grown up on.

He has certainly been the catalyst for the change at United, however, to call him a breath of fresh air is not the right way to put it, for he's, actually, a return to the core values expected of the players of the club. Here's an analysis of why Bruno Fernandes resembles the archetypal Manchester United player.

#5 Quality - Paul Scholes

Luis Figo once said of Paul Scholes: I'm star-struck when I see Paul Scholes because you never see him. On the pitch, you can't catch him. Off the pitch, he disappears. Paul Scholes was the best and the most complete midfielder of his generation. This is not my opinion, this is the opinion of World Cup, European Championship, Champions League and multiple league title winners Zinedine Zidane and Xavi Hernandez, who know a thing or two about playing in central midfield!

Just like Scholsey, no one has been able to catch Bruno Fernandes either. Since he arrived in England, he has had the most goal contributions (8 goals and 7 assists) in the Premier League. His link-up play with Paul Pogba and the three forwards and his vision looks eerily similar to when Paul Scholes marshalled United's midfield and was one of the main reasons why United was such a dominant force .

#4 Mentality - Roy Keane

Roy Keane's hardman image undermines what a wonderful footballer he was. Signed as a box-to-box midfielder for a then British record £3.75 million from Nottingham Forest, Keane eventually settled down in defensive midfield churning out marvellous performances week in, week out.

Bruno Fernandes has started doing exactly that since he came in through the door at United. His siege mentality has rubbed off on his teammates as well. Just like Keane, Bruno Fernandes was known to call-out underperforming teammates at Sporting.

While that has thankfully not been the case at United, the rest of the team seems to have upped their game quite a fair bit in his presence. The United of the past would have been content with protecting a one-goal advantage, but Bruno Fernandes, like Keano, wants to maintain a higher level of performance and run the opposition into the ground.

#3 Can do it all - Wayne Rooney

At the time of arrival, Wayne Rooney was the most complete youngster at United. He obviously could score with his feet and his head, but he could also pick a pass, play the diagonal ball, drop deep to link up play with the other forwards and also fullfil defensive duties, something which, at the time, couldn't be said of a certain Cristiano Ronaldo.

Bruno Fernandes has primarily played as an attacking midfielder, the number 10, but when Pogba was unavailable due to injury pre-lockdown, Bruno Fernandes operated in central midfield, as the number 8 against Wolves and Everton.

Bruno Fernandes' general position was much deeper than what we've been accustomed to since the restart. His ability to link-up play and his versatility to play across midfield is reminiscent of Wayne Rooney.

#2 Ryan Giggs - Adaptability

Ryan Giggs adapted his game to suit the needs of the team and to prolong his career. He started as pacey winger running up and down the left-wing and tearing teams apart with hazy dribbles, became a left-sided midfielder upon the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo and later dictated play from deep as a central midfielder.

To have played at the very top for more than two decades is a testament to the man's immense ability and adaptability.

Likewise, Bruno Fernandes has adapted his game to suit the needs of the Premier League is a manner not many thought he could. Alexandre Pato even suggested that he'd struggle in England and be a flop (much like Pato himself at Chelsea). However, Bruno Fernandes, interestingly, is producing the goods at a higher rate in England than in Portugal.

He has a goal involvement every 81 minutes for Manchester United while he was goals and assists came at every 102 minutes at Sporting Lisbon. Safe to say, his adaptability has transformed United's season.

#1 Cristiano Ronaldo - Hunger

For a while, there was a consensus at United that Wayne Rooney was a better player than Cristiano Ronaldo. If there is one thing that separated Cristiano and Rooney, it was hunger. Rooney was content at playing the sport he loved, he just enjoyed being able to be a professional footballer.

Cristiano wanted to be the best player in the world, he just wanted 'it' more. He would train notoriously, be the first person at Carrington in the morning and was usually the last man out of the door. He would practice his free-kicks for hours after everyone had left.

Similarly, Bruno Fernandes has shown that he will settle for nothing less than being the best. Since the restart, no player not named Messi or Cristiano has had more goal involvements than Bruno Fernandes.

United manager Ole Gunnar Solksjaer has said that Bruno Fernandes is not content with giving 99%, it's always about giving 100% for him. With the games coming thick and fast, he almost ran himself into the ground and it showed as his performances tapered off just a tad bit in the last few games but he never stopped or complained. He kept going and United ascended to third place.

Bruno Fernandes isn't a breath of fresh air at United, he is a return to the roots, the foundations of Manchester United.

Edited by S Chowdhury