The Portuguese is the Red Devils' talisman, yet his critics are rounding on him after Champions League failure and missing the trip to Anfield

Bruno Fernandes is Manchester United's ever-present player, the catalyst for the team's greatest performances, but more often than not the target when things go wrong. And this season, things have been going wrong rather a lot.

The Portuguese can always be relied upon wherever and whenever his team needs him, sometimes playing through severe pain or in an unfamiliar position when needs must.

But one thing United's captain cannot do is control his emotions and that is why he will be absent from Sunday's daunting trip to Liverpool, which he misses through suspension after getting a careless fifth yellow card of the season for dissent.

Fernandes' absence at Anfield is a massive blow to a team who are already down to the bare bones in terms of injuries, and devoid of confidence after enduring their worst start to a season in 50 years.

But it will also be fascinating to see how they fare on enemy territory without their usual talisman. Are they set for another drubbing, or could they actually benefit from his absence?

Getty ImagesThe scapegoat of last year's debacle

Fernandes will have harrowing memories of his last trip to Anfield, when he became the scapegoat for United's worst-ever defeat to Liverpool.

When things began to spiral out of control for the visitors and Jurgen Klopp's side continuously eviscerated United on the counter, Fernandes did not act in the manner many people think a captain should, berating his team-mates and repeatedly waving his arms about in frustration.

But the criticism he received was over the top, especially from Gary Neville, who wrongly accused him of asking to be substituted when he was actually asking Erik ten Hag for instructions.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesMore minutes than any player in Europe

Nevertheless, some pundits such as Richard Keys and Michael Owen have suggested that Fernandes got booked on purpose last week against Bournemouth in order to be spared another humiliation at Anfield.

Those claims, however, are utter nonsense. Fernandes has never hidden when things have turned against him. United have been involved in plenty of dire moments in his time at the club but he has barely missed a minute of action, sitting out just one match (not including when suspended) since joining from Sporting CP in January 2020.

He played more minutes than any other player in Europe last season, including goalkeepers. There can be no question that he wanted to play at Anfield and put last year's abysmal result right.

What cannot be denied is that the booking he received was careless and one of many examples of when he has let his emotions get the better of him, to the team's detriment.

GettySometimes a cooler head is needed

Fernandes wears his heart on his sleeve, whether making himself heard to referees, sobbing after a painful result or rallying his team. That is why he is so beloved by United fans. But sometimes a cooler head is needed to navigate stormy matches.

Take last month's wild match at Galatasaray, when United twice squandered a two-goal lead to draw 3-3. Fernandes was at his best in the early stages of the game, scoring a superb goal and setting up Alejandro Garnacho's strike. But he also failed to guide the team through the game when they needed to slow things down and protect their lead.

He gave away two free-kicks by United's area and although Andre Onana was the real culprit for his catastrophic goalkeeping on the night, they were still needless fouls that left the team exposed. Beyond that, though, Fernandes was partly responsible for driving the team forward in search of more goals and leaving them too open in midfield when they needed to control the match and hang on to what they had.

The captain admitted so afterwards. "We have to control our games,” he said. “It’s not the first game we have like this. Even in Copenhagen, we had 3-2, you have to be smart enough and manage the game better."

GettyToo many patchy performances

Galatasaray was one of Fernandes' better performances on the whole this season, however. He was particularly bad in the atrocious defeat by Bournemouth, playing a sloppy pass to Scott McTominay which was gobbled up by the visitors and led to their opening goal.

It was not an isolated moment: his passing was all over the place against the dynamic and intelligent Cherries and when United needed leadership he could not provide it.

Fernandes was also poor in United's other heavy home defeat of the season against Manchester City, barely influencing the play at all and looking helpless to stop Pep Guardiola's side's dominance. He has also squandered big chances in big moments, especially his free header against Tottenham which missed the target.