Paul Parker has labelled Bruno Fernandes a 'brat' and believes the Manchester United midfielder cannot command respect as a captain because of the way he conducts himself.
Fernandes has come in for huge criticism following United's 7-0 humiliation at the hands of Liverpool. The Portuguese midfielder has captained his side in the absence of Harry Maguire, and did so again at Anfield but imploded with the rest of the squad as Jurgen Klopp's side hit six goals in the second half.
Much of the post-match criticism was aimed at Fernandes, who appeared to nudge assistant referee Adam Nunn and also saw Liverpool's midfield breeze past him on multiple occasions. And Parker has slammed the 28-year-old, insisting he should never have been captain due to his 'petulant' attitude.
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“First of all, I was saying from day one that Bruno Fernandes shouldn't have been the captain," Parker told Apostagolos. "I think he is a player who should be left to his own devices. He is not a leader and this is the reason why it took him that long to get to a big club like Man United.
“People are trying to protect him by saying that he is the best player, he is making assists and so on. But the truth is that he has been childish and petulant with the way he throws himself to the ground and blames the referees. He is a brat.
"Wearing the armband is about getting the other players to calm down. Imagine if he told Casemiro to calm down. He would just shake his head. No one would ever accept anything coming from him because of the way he conducts himself.
“He prefers to walk around and kick people, complain and give up. He gave up against Liverpool, which is miserable. He was not the only player who gave up and it was wrong by all the players. But as a captain he should make sure that it wasn't happening and he is never doing that.”
On Wednesday, United manager Erik ten Hag defended his stand-in captain by confirming he will keep the armband when Maguire is not playing.
"He’s pointing and coaching players, he’s an inspiration for the whole team, but no one is perfect, everyone makes mistakes, we have to learn, I have to learn," the Dutchman said. "He has to learn, he will because he’s intelligent, I’m happy to have Bruno Fernandes in my team and that he’s captain when Harry isn’t on the pitch."
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