Manchester United's defeat to Fulham on Saturday afternoon told Erik ten Hag one thing he already knew - the Reds need greater strength in depth.
As soon as the news broke of Rasmus Hojlund's injury, there were fears that United would struggle to make any form of impact going forward. Ten Hag was brave to introduce Omari Forson into the starting XI but the youthful presence of Alejandro Garnacho, Kobbie Mainoo and the 19-year-old winger cannot do it alone.
At that stage, United needed their more experienced players to help steady the ship. As they chased the winner in second-half stoppage time, Bruno Fernandes had the expectation of the captain's armband on his shoulders.
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We know the Portuguese midfielder can show moments of magic and is one of the Reds' greatest creative threats on his day. However, he can let himself down when he reverts to play-acting and sadly we saw more of that against Fulham.
Match of the Day viewers spotted Fernandes feigning injury after taking a shot, rolling around in agony before hopping to his feet when the attack was still alive until eventually berating the referee for not awarding a free kick. If this had been Garnacho, Ten Hag would not have hesitated to try and eradicate it from his game already.
At this latter stage of his career, Fernandes should know better than to do that as it very rarely works. While United have been winning, the 29-year-old's attitude on the pitch has not been called into question.
Yes, he has been vocal in his disapproval towards refereeing decisions but the diving and trying to gain an advantage has not been as prevalent. United's best hope of getting
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