Bruno Fernandes has revealed the brilliant message he received from his father after missing a penalty in Manchester United’s 4-1 victory over Newcastle last month.
Fernandes was on the scoresheet at St James’ Park in a win that alleviated growing pressure on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer but also missed a spot-kick for the first time in a United shirt.
United’s indispensable Portuguese playmaker had netted 10 penalties in a row but had his uncharacteristically tame effort foiled by Karl Darlow.
And Fernandes has discussed that his father unusually sent him a text message mocking the miss.
“The day after the Newcastle game, my dad sent me a message – and he never sends me a message, he always calls me the day after the game, always,” he told the UTD podcast.
“And this message says, ‘Congratulations on your goal, but from tomorrow I will start to explain to you how to take penalties!’
“I was like, ‘Hey, I’ve missed one penalty in 11 and he’s talking to me about this’, because he never scored a penalty in all the years he was playing football!
“But this kind of situation helps you improve because all the time you know you have people behind you who will always ask more and demand more from you.”
Fernandes brings an elite mentality to Solskjaer’s squad and nobody will have been more frustrated than him by the fact his flawless run of penalties ended.
But most supporters would agree that they still have faith in the 26-year-old to remain United’s main penalty taker.
Fernandes is in action this evening as Portugal take on France in the Nations League. The midfielder could be involved in a tussle with teammate Paul Pogba if the duo are selected.
The game can be viewed live from Sky Sports Football at 19:45 GMT.
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The best playmaker united have is bruno