Bruno Fernandes explains why his goal was allowed to stand despite offside controversy during Manchester United’s derby win

Manchester United registered a brilliant comeback 2-1 win against Manchester City in the derby at Old Trafford on Saturday, January 14. Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford scored for the Red Devils after Jack Grealish gave the visitors the lead.

Fernandes' goal, however, was controversial. As Casemiro played a through ball, Rashford, who was in an offside position, ran towards the ball before Fernandes popped up to slot past Ederson.

Many have opinionated that the goal shouldn't have stood and Rashford had to be deemed offside.

Fernandes, the scorer of the equalizer, has now shared his take on the matter. Speaking after the game, the Manchester United midfielder said (via 90min):

"I think because I was facing the goal, Marcus thought I was in a better position, I didn't know if any of us were offside or not, but it didn't make a difference because no one was close to him, so the team [Man City] has to defend. The only one close was one close to me."

Fernandes further added:

"Honestly, it's always important to win the game. As the manager said before the game. It doesn't matter who the opponent is, what matters is winning and we did it. It was an amazing comeback, a great effort from the team."

He also shared his thoughts on Manchester United's turn of form, as he said:

"I said it before the game to the team: 'we look like a team now'. Some time ago, sometimes you saw a team, sometimes we looked a bit for ourselves. Now you see a team that works hard for each other. You see that it pays."

United are currently third in the league with 38 points on the board after 18 games. They trail second-placed Manchester City by a point and leaders Arsenal, who have a game in hand, by six points.

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Bruno Fernandes admitted considering Manchester United future before signing new deal

Manchester United v Manchester City - Premier League

Bruno Fernandes recently extended his stay at Manchester United. The Portuguese midfielder, however, admitted that he considered whether the club had a bright future. Speaking to The Athletic, Fernandes said:

"I said I’m on good money, I don’t want a new contract without knowing that we have a good future in the club."

He added:

"I want to know where we are going, I don’t need to know who the manager is, but I want to know just as a club, do you think we have a future? Do you have a plan for the future? What are your thoughts on where we can go? What does the club want? Does the club want to achieve trophies or does the club want to build something to go to the Champions League?"

Fernandes joined the Red Devils from Sporting CP in 2020 and has since registered 54 goals and 44 assists in 152 games.