Bruno Fernandes inspires Manchester United to vital win over Brentford
Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes now has the assist record of Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne in his sights. Pic: Martin Rickett/PA Wire.
Manchester United fans wouldn't want to contemplate where their team would be if they had sold Bruno Fernandes last summer. What is for certain is that the Reds wouldn't now be on the cusp of qualifying for the Champions League.
Fernandes has led by outstanding example this season, despite United's willingness to listen to offers for him from Saudi Arabia in a bid to raise transfer funds for Ruben Amorim.
Nineteen assists later, with Amorim gone and United now rediscovering their soul under Michael Carrick, just a single point from their final four games will clinch a top-five finish and put the Reds back with European football royalty.
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Fernandes was involved in both of the first-half goals scored by Casemiro and Benjamin Sesko.
Only Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne have provided more goals in a single Premier League season. Fernandes is just one more flash of magic behind both.
This was a huge victory for United against a Brentford side also chasing European qualification. Manager Keith Andrews would have travelled back to London wondering how his team's six-game unbeaten record came to an end.
United started and finished the first half with goals of real quality. In between, the visitors squandered a string of opportunities, with top-scorer Igor Thiago the chief culprit.
When Mathias Jensen finally beat United keeper Senne Lammens three minutes from time with a terrific 25-yard drive, it was just too late.
The home side should have been ahead inside two minutes. Kobbie Mainoo burst powerfully past Mikkel Damsgaard before dropping his shoulder to put Nathan Collins and Yehor Yarmolyuk on their backsides.
When Brentford keeper CaoimhĂn Kelleher came out to narrow the angle, Mainoo unselfishly passed to Amad Diallo only for the winger to see his shot roll wide off the inside of Sepp van den Berg's leg.
Maguire thought he had beaten Kelleher with a meaty header from Fernandes' corner, but the Irishman arched himself to claw the ball out at full stretch.
Only Arsenal have scored more set-piece goals than United this season. Number 20 arrived in the 11th minute when another Fernandes corner was nodded back by Maguire and Casemiro muscled himself above Dango Ouattara to head home his ninth Premier League strike of the season.
Thiago's 24 goals in all competitions this season have earned him his first Brazil cap. He is Erling Haaland's only rival for the Golden Boot.
But he missed the ball completely when Keane Lewis-Potter's low cross appeared to have given him a far-post tap-in. Then, twice in the space of a few seconds, he was sent clear by passes from Damsgaard and Ouattara, but first he lost his footing under pressure from Luke Shaw and then he allowed Ayden Heaven to sneak out a foot to deny him.
Those two chances came after United keeper Senne Lammens had flicked out an instinctive hand to push behind Michael Kayode's close-range effort.
Thiago was also in the vicinity when Lammens impressed again to scoop the ball away after Damsgaard's cross bounced off Heaven's arm and looped towards the top corner. Andrews might have wondered why his team were not given a penalty.
The Dubliner's sense of injustice increased when United scored again three minutes before half-time.
Diallo's tackle fell to Fernandes in space just inside his own half and the Portuguese midfielder carried the ball to the edge of Brentford's penalty area before his pass invited Sesko to cut inside Collins and beat Kelleher with an emphatic finish.
United's skipper now has the assist record of Henry and Kevin De Bruyne in his sights.
Carrick had still seen enough to replace Diallo with Noussair Mazraoui at the break in a bid to cut off the visitors' supply lines.
Maguire almost took the game away from the Londoners on the restart but his downward header from Fernandes' corner once again saw Kelleher rescue his team.
United held Brentford at arm's length for much of the second half, but they would have endured a nervous last 20 minutes had Ouattara not sent a close-range header against the post.
Jensen's goal shocked the home side and Damsgaard was disappointed to send a header straight at Lammens soon afterwards.
Lammens; Dalot, Maguire, Heaven, Shaw (Yoro 73, 5); Casemiro, Mainoo; Diallo 5 (Mazraoui 46, 6), Fernandes, Mbeumo 6 (Mount 74, 5); Sesko 7 (Zirkzee 88).
Kelleher 7; Kayode 7, Van den Berg 6, Collins 5, Lewis-Potter 7; Yarmolyuk 5, Jensen 6; Ouattara 6, Damsgaard 6, Schade 5 (Nelson 73, 6); Thiago 5.
Chris Kavanagh.
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