Bruno Fernandes (footballer, born 1994)

For other people named Bruno Fernandes, see Bruno Fernandes (disambiguation).

In this Portuguese name, the first or maternal family name is Borges and the second or paternal family name is Fernandes.

Bruno Fernandes

Bruno Fernandes Portugal, 2018.jpg

Fernandes playing for Portugal at the 2018 FIFA World Cup

Personal information

Full name Bruno Miguel Borges Fernandes[1]

Date of birth 8 September 1994 (age 27)[2]

Place of birth Maia, Portugal

Height 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)[2]

Position(s) Attacking midfielder

Club information

Current team Manchester United

Number 18

Youth career

2002–2004 Infesta

2004–2012 Boavista

2005–2010 → Pasteleira (loan)

2012–2013 Novara

Senior career*

Years Team Apps (Gls)

2012–2013 Novara 23 (4)

2013–2016 Udinese 86 (10)

2016–2017 Sampdoria 33 (5)

2017–2020 Sporting CP 83 (39)

2020– Manchester United 73 (33)

National team‡

2012 Portugal U19 2 (0)

2014 Portugal U20 5 (1)

2014–2017 Portugal U21 17 (6)

2016 Portugal U23 4 (0)

2017– Portugal 40 (6)

Honours

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 22:30, 8 February 2022 (UTC)

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 21:54, 14 November 2021 (UTC)

Bruno Miguel Borges Fernandes (European Portuguese: [ˈbɾunu fɨɾˈnɐ̃dɨʃ]; born 8 September 1994) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Premier League club Manchester United and the Portugal national team. Considered one of the best attacking midfielders in the world, Fernandes is known for his goalscoring, playmaking, leadership, penalty taking, and work rate.[3]

Born in Maia, Porto, Fernandes started his career at Italian Serie B side Novara but soon made a move to Serie A side Udinese in 2013, followed by Sampdoria three years later. After five years in Italy, he signed with Sporting CP in 2017, where he was named club captain. He won back-to-back Taças da Liga in 2018 and 2019, as well as the Taça de Portugal, leading to him being named in the Primeira Liga Team of the Year and Primeira Liga Player of the Year in both seasons. In 2018–19, he scored a record of 33 goals in all competitions, making him the highest-scoring Portuguese midfielder and the highest-scoring midfielder in Europe in a single season. Fernandes' performances sparked the interest of several Premier League clubs, with Manchester United signing him for an initial €55 million (£47 million) in January 2020, becoming at the time, the second-highest fee for a Portuguese player leaving the domestic league.

Fernandes is a former Portugal youth international, representing his country at under-19, under-20, under-21 and under-23 levels. He represented Portugal at the 2016 Summer Olympics. He made his senior international debut in 2017, being chosen in Portugal's squads for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, 2019 UEFA Nations League Finals and UEFA Euro 2020, winning the 2019 competition on home soil, while being named in the Team of the Tournament.