Alvaro Fernandez has struggled to break into the Benfica side after joining the Portuguese giants on loan in January. At the weekend the Manchester United loanee played all 90 minutes for the first time in a 3-0 win over Moirerense.
It was Fernandez’s first start in the Portuguese league, having previously made five substitute appearances. The full-back has two starts and three substitute appearances in cup competitions, but he has not been able to cement a spot in Roger Schmidt’s side.
Fernandez picked up a yellow card in the win and helped keep a clean sheet while completing 90% of his passes. On top of that, he made three tackles and three clearances to help Benfica in transition.
Taking to Instagram after the game, Fernandez posted: “The wait is long but the success is there…”
View this post on Instagram
In a post-match interview with Mais Futebol, Benfica manager Schmidt admitted Fernandez needed game time. He added that he was satisfied with the performance and appeared to rate him as a player.
“It was really good for him to play, he hasn’t played much in the last few weeks because Aursnes has been doing really well in that position, but he’s a very talented player.
“Today we wanted him to play the full 90 minutes and we were very satisfied.”
Benfica need to decide if they want to sign Fernandez permanently at the end of the season.
There was an obligation written into his loan deal, which is why United took him away from Granada, granted he plays more than half of the games. That obligation clearly hasn’t been met and that creates uncertainty for Fernandez’s future.
Schmidt added in his post-match that nothing is set in stone, but the Portuguese giants will be keeping their door open regarding a potential deal in the summer.
“The situation is clear, he is on loan and we have the option of keeping him at Benfica, but everything is open.
“We have the option to keep him, let’s see what’s best for him and also for us. Now we are focused on finishing the season, only then we will decide.”
Ten Hag was criticised for not giving Fernandez a chance when United had so many injuries in defence at the start of the season. I wonder if people still feel the same about that as he’s struggled to get into Schmidt’s plans.
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