EPL: ‘Just to embarrass him’ – Carragher on why Carrick refused to use Bruno Fernandes in 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth

Former Liverpool player, Jamie Carragher has said that Michael Carrick deliberately attempted to ’embarrass’ midfielder, Bruno Fernandes by keeping him on the bench throughout Manchester United’s 3-0 loss to Bournemouth on Sunday.

Fernandes remained on the bench for the entirety of Manchester United’s 3-0 home defeat.

Carragher contended that Carrick had no intention of introducing the Portuguese midfielder into the match.

Fernandes was excluded from the starting lineup four days after his criticism of Carrick’s tactical approach in the 4-1 Champions League loss at Como, a decision the manager justified as being based on ‘pure football’ considerations.

Speaking on Sky Sports, Carragher stated that Carrick’s justification did not align with his observations at Old Trafford.

Carragher said, “I believe he never intended to bring him on. It was a deliberate decision to keep him on the bench in an attempt to essentially embarrass him.”

Fernandes, 32, was named among the substitutes for a Premier League match for merely the sixth occasion since his arrival at Manchester United in January 2020, as reported by Opta.

Rayan Vitor scored from a volley following Justin Kluivert’s free-kick in the 38th minute, Marcus Tavernier made it 2-0 after Leny Yoro lost possession to Adrien Truffert and Evanilson completed the scoring in the 71st minute.

Carrick introduced Matheus Cunha at the interval in place of Youri Tielemans, subsequently utilizing Lisandro Martinez, Joshua Zirkzee and Shea Lacey from the substitutes’ bench, accounting for four of his five available substitutions.

Fernandes warmed up during the match but was never deployed.