Bruno Fernandes' difficult passing style
"Modern football increasingly focuses on ball control, but one player continues to go against this trend," commented Sky Sports. "Bruno Fernandes's passing choices are risky, but can make a difference. Man Utd's captain is a creative player who plays without fear of losing the ball."
There is one statistic that highlights Fernandes' unique approach. Sky Sports uses tracking data to calculate the expected success rate of each pass based on the players' positions on the field. The results show that Fernandes's expected pass success rate is only 69.7%.
The Portuguese midfielder is the only player in the Premier League to have made at least 100 passes since the beginning of this season with an expected pass success rate below 70%. This statistic shows that Fernandes is actively trying difficult passes more than any other player in the tournament.
The fact that the actual pass completion rate is slightly higher (75.15% - according to Livescore) is testament to Fernandes' ability to make those passes. But perhaps the real skill, the greatest talent of the Man Utd captain is having the vision to spot those difficult passes. Fernandes can imagine those images in his head.
One of the reasons why the passes Fernandes makes are so difficult is because the ball is often sent between opposing players, with 56 such passes in the Premier League this season.
The 29-year-old midfielder also does not aim at static targets. The average speed of Fernandes' pass receivers is also the highest in the Premier League at 2.99 meters/second, far ahead of second person Trent-Alexandre Arnold (2.91 meters/second). The Portuguese midfielder regularly looks for teammates on the move - it's a difficult skill.
When a Sky Sports reporter pointed out these statistics at Man Utd's training ground, Ten Hag was not surprised and wanted Fernandes to continue to maintain that style of play. "We have to support and give Fernandes more confidence to continue doing that," the Dutch coach said. "Because he is a genius at making the final pass."
Ten Hag also admitted that playing risky matches like Fernandes did is not easy. "It requires a lot," he expressed. "First, intelligence. Next is character, because even if you make mistakes many times, you still keep trying to do it."
Surely you must have a strong mentality to not make simple passes, but choose difficult passes. Steven Gerrard once said that when he first joined the Liverpool first team, he was advised by his senior Gary McAllister - a great passer on the team - to simply make the next pass if he lost the ball in the previous pass. That will help Gerrard regain confidence before continuing to take risks with the ball.
But Fernandes does not follow such a rule. Fernandes can fail on difficult passes and receive negative reactions from the audience. But if he sees that there is a chance to find that opening just a few seconds later, the Portuguese midfielder will never miss it.
Still, Ten Hag is concerned with striking the right balance. The Dutch coach wants Man Utd's creative midfielder to make a difference in the opponent's field, but within limits and without affecting the collective ball control play.
"Of course, I wish Fernandes could increase his ability to make passes, but still affect the game in the same way with the decisive pass, the final pass," Ten Hag emphasized. "That's what Fernandes is aiming for, and the whole team has to help him. But as captain and at such an age, Fernandes sometimes has to think strategically that keeping the ball is also very important for a team. The team controls the match. Making the right decisions is the quality of a leader."
Ten Hag's job is to ensure Fernandes has enough of the ball in the most effective areas, and that could change. "Fernandes has a big impact on Man Utd's playing style and we will see what is needed against each opponent," the 53-year-old coach analyzed. "Fernandes can pass from many positions, from the midfield as well as wide positions. Last season, Fernandes was tested in a deeper position, and there you can also see that Fernandes can make passes very good for developing the ball".
Ten Hag knows the qualities of his students. The Dutch coach's job is to provide Fernandes with the foundation, the right players around him, to do the right things to take advantage of the Portuguese midfielder's skills, creating the conditions for success. "We have to get the ball to Fernandes in the right space," Ten Hag added. And Fernandes will do the rest.
