"He goes missing when there are moments of adversity" - Simon Jordan questions Manchester United decision to appoint Bruno Fernandes as captain

Former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan has urged Manchester United to strip Bruno Fernandes of captaincy. The English businessman believes the Portuguese midfielder does not deserve to wear the armband.

Fernandes received the captain's armband under Erik ten Hag ahead of the 2023-24 campaign after Harry Maguire was relieved of his duties.

However, Jordan believes the former Sporting CP star does not deserve the role as said on talkSPORT:

"I think performance-wise, at times, you can look at Bruno Fernandes, as a captain, he goes missing when there are moments of adversity. I don't think he's a leader. I think he's clearly not a leader, and why you'd want him as a leader, I don't know."

Jordan then claimed that the Red Devils that they will not be able to regain their spot at the top of the league with Fernandes as their captain, saying:

"When you have leaders like that, you'll get certain outcomes. And if Manchester United's desire is to get to the top of the tree again, you won't get that with Bruno Fernandes as your captain."

Despite Jordan's criticisms, Fernandes has played a great role for Manchester United since his arrival in January 2020. The Portuguese midfielder has registered 187 appearances across all competitions for the Red Devils, scoring 64 goals and providing 54 assists. He also helped the club lift the Carabao Cup last season.

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"I don't think that he is a leader" - Simon Jordan slams Manchester United star for behavior in Tottenham loss

Manchester United suffered a 2-0 away defeat at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on Saturday (19 August). Pape Matar Sarr got on the scoresheet for the Lilywhites in the second half while Lisandro Martinez conceded a late own goal.

The Red Devils were denied a penalty in the first half after Alejandro Garnacho's strike seemed to hit Christian Romero's hand. It led to a fiery protest from Fernandes against the referee and he was immediately booked.

Jordan believes the midfielder's behavior was unwarranted, insisting that it was not a penalty. The English businessman said:

"The irony of it is that the consensus of people's views regarding the situation on Monday was that it wasn't a penalty to Manchester United."

He added:

"So the fact that he feels the necessity to claim a victim's culture, and ultimately to build a galvanized or clandestine spirit amongst the United dressing room with people victimizing them[selves], and holding them to a different set of standards."

Jordan concluded with a warning to United:

"Again, I go through the simple point, be careful about the kind of leaders that you want because I don't think that he is a leader. And if Manchester United are going to regain some of the poise they had in the past, you need to have proper leaders on the pitch to do it."

The Red Devils will next host Nottingham Forest on Saturday, August 26.