Michael Carrick leaves Bruno Fernandes on bench for Manchester United v Bournemouth
Bruno Fernandes was named among the substitutes by Michael Carrick for Manchester United’s Premier League match against Bournemouth on October 25, 2026. Carrick made the selection as he attempts to turn his team’s fortunes around at a critical time.
Fernandes, 32, publicly questioned United’s tactics after a 4-1 defeat to Como on Wednesday night in the UEFA Champions League, a loss that represented the club’s ninth game without a win and prompted Carrick to apologise to supporters. When asked on Friday whether he would remove the Portugal captain from the leadership role, Carrick said: “I’ll always do what’s best for the football club,” he said. “If I’ve spoken to (Fernandes) or haven’t spoken to him, I don’t think this is the time to go into too much detail.”
Fernandes addressed tactical choices in a post-match interview with TNT Sports, saying: “It was a staff decision not to press man-to-man.” “I think sometimes we have to be more brave under pressure, take a risk of getting that press very high and making them uncomfortable, as they did to us,” he added. “The centre-back was coming to mark me all the way into my own half. I think sometimes we had to do that as a team and we were not really able to do it.” His comments after the Como game have been cited as a possible factor in Carrick’s selection.
Carrick, a former United midfielder now coach, opted to leave his captain out of the starting XI for this Premier League fixture following Fernandes’s criticism and what was described as a sluggish display against Como. The coach apologised to fans after the Como defeat and has adjusted his lineup amid the club’s poor run of results.
Statistically, Fernandes had started all 10 of Manchester United’s matches across the Premier League and Champions League so far this season before this selection change, and he was used as a substitute in the Carabao Cup defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion. This occasion marks the first time this season Fernandes has begun a Premier League match on the bench.
Since signing from Sporting CP in January 2020, Fernandes has missed only a handful of games, mostly because of injury or sickness, and has featured in 186 of United’s 197 Premier League matches since the start of the 2020-21 campaign. His most recent start from the bench prior to this season came on May 4, 2025, in a 4-3 defeat at Brentford.
Manchester United posted “Today's United starting XI! 💪🇾🇪 pic.twitter.com/i1amM2Zeih” as they confirmed the selection, with Fernandes available as a substitute for the Premier League meeting with Bournemouth.
