Bruno Fernandes explains crazy Ten Hag tactics in Man Utd FA Cup win; lauds ‘excellent’ supporters

Man Utd captain Bruno Fernandes and manager Erik ten Hag

Bruno Fernandes has provided an insight into the Manchester United tactics against Liverpool, with Erik ten Hag throwing plenty of forwards on and leaving his captain to play at centre-back.

Man Utd were the winners of a seven-goal thriller on Sunday, as they beat Liverpool 4-3 at Old Trafford to book their place in the FA Cup semi-finals. In one of the most entertaining games of the season, Man Utd twice came from behind before winning it in the 121st minute.

Man Utd took the lead early on through Scott McTominay and went on to control the first 40 minutes. However, Liverpool fought back and managed to steal the lead just before half time, with Alexis Mac Allister and Mo Salah both scoring.

Man Utd, clearly shellshocked from the first half, struggled to get a hold of the match after the break. But Antony stunned everyone inside Old Trafford when he came off the bench and made it 2-2 in the 87th minute, registering only his second Man Utd goal of the campaign.

Marcus Rashford squandered a brilliant opportunity to win it for Man Utd late on, which saw the tie go to extra time. Liverpool regained the advantage in the 105th minute through a deflected Harvey Elliott strike, though Rashford made up for his earlier error by bringing it back to 3-3.

Amad Diallo then stepped up to net the winner right at the end of extra time, sending the Man Utd supporters wild. Diallo took his shirt off in celebration and was then sent off for a second yellow, though he did not care.

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Ten Hag needs to win the FA Cup and help Man Utd qualify for next season’s Champions League to give himself a chance of remaining as the club’s manager. He clearly knew the importance of winning the game in extra time, as he sent on a host of attackers including Diallo, Antony and Mason Mount, leaving Diogo Dalot and Harry Maguire as the only two defenders on the pitch.

Fernandes was clearly struggling in the latter stages and opted to go into defence to help Maguire out. Following the victory, he spoke to TNT Sports Brazil about his role.

Man Utd had ‘no positions’

“It’s whatever I have to do to help the team win,” the attacking midfielder said. “This… there are no positions. At that moment we had to take risks, we had to play basically man-to-man, which was what the coach asked of us. And he didn’t want me to be so deep at certain moments.

“But I felt it and H [Maguire] often asked me to drop back to help because obviously there was Gakpo and Darwin, two very fast players, with a lot of speed.

“And at one point I had to jump into the middle, at others I had to drop a little deeper, because my legs were getting tired, I was cramping up everywhere, and I even took a knock to help out (laughs).

“But it’s whatever it takes to help the team. Because Antony ended up at left-back, Eriksen was also at 6, McTominay further forward. We were all giving everything we had to win the game.”

Fernandes went on to label the home supporters ‘excellent’ due to the crucial role they played.

“To be honest, I was shouting and I couldn’t hear my voice,” he continued. “So you have an idea of what the noise was like for us on the pitch, with the tiredness, with everything. My lungs were on their last legs too… but it was impressive. I think they were excellent with us from start to finish, even when we conceded a goal, because the next moment we’d create something and the stadium would rise up again and create the momentum we needed.

“They’ve always been like that during the season, and I also understand that there are times when they’re more down, that you don’t hear the noise of this incredible stadium as much. it’s normal, because they’re not used to being in the places where we are. And we’re not either, and we don’t want to be there. And we understand their frustration, so we just have to give everything we’ve got and then they’ll appreciate it.”