Portugese magnifico Bruno Fernandes has said that he hopes to possibly become a manager after his playing days are over. And of course, if there is one team he hopes to try his hand at managing, it’s Manchester United.
The 26-year-old midfield maestro made the remarks ahead of tomorrow night’s Europa League semifinal tie, leg one, against AS Roma.
Manchester United vs AS Roma UEL Semifinal FYIs
Leg 1/2 Kickoff: Thu April 29, 8pm, Old Trafford
Team news for both sides: go here
Manchester United Starting XI Prediction: go here
TV: BT Sport 2
Odds: United win 4/7 draw 7/2 Roma win 11/2
Head to Head: United wins 4 draw 1 Roma win 1
“I’m trying to enjoy the football, you know. I think I want to be a coach,” he said to United’s official site.
“Honestly, I would like to be a coach. I don’t know which team I would like to manage.
“Of course, the biggest team if I can manage Manchester United, I will be happy. I can leave now just some words so if people see this, if I’m a manager in the future, the fans can make some pressure to bring me as a coach.”
Bruno Fernandes continued: “But I think I would like to be a coach in the future. I’m not sure but for what I feel for football, for the feeling I have, I think I have to continue to be inside of football because my whole life is about this. So I think, in the future, it needs to be with football too.”
United have reached another level since Fernandes moved over from Sporting Lisbon in the 2020 January transfer window, giving them quality that no one else can bring.
There had been questions about how Bruno Fernandes would or could play with Paul Pogba, initially, but those fears have long been put to rest. Those two have long shown a perfect ability to coexist and coalesce, and this is an example of the type of phenomena that gaffers deal with everyday- man managing individual players and getting them on the same page.
He’s also shown a lot of leadership skills on the pitch, so who knows, maybe he would be a natural for this?
Prediction: United 2, Roma 1
The English giants have the home field advantage, and come into this one with a more fit squad.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and SB Nation. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.