Hit hard by the financial crisis of the past decade, Portugal has seen a strong wave of emigration to earn a living. There are more than 2 million citizens of this Iberian peninsular country living abroad, accounting for about a fifth of the population.
For about five years, Jose Fernandes was one of those migrants. Unemployed and unable to support his family, he decided to go to Switzerland to find work to improve his life. His initial plan was to bring his wife and three children with him, but problems quickly arose: Bruno, his younger son, refused to come along. Not only that, Bruno threatened to run away if they tried to force him to go to Switzerland.
Finally, his wish came true. As Jose packed his bags and headed for the promised land, his mother, Virginia Borges, returned to Gueifaes, a suburb of Maia, 15 minutes from Porto – to help her son pursue his football dream.
Much sooner than she expected, the family’s difficult decision paid off. During an Under-19 match, Bruno was spotted by a scout from Novara, Italy, and received an attractive offer to leave the family in mid-2012. Unlike his father’s offer to go abroad, this time Bruno immediately agreed. And so, at the age of 17, after Novara and Boavista reached a transfer agreement for a fee of 40,000 euros, it was his turn to leave.
When Bruno arrived at Porto airport in August 2012, there were no cameras waiting for him. No fans, no screaming, just him and his family. A far cry from the way he left Portugal eight years later, in January 2020, to join Manchester United, one of the world’s greatest clubs. He was Bruno Fernandes.
Bruno Fernandes is no prodigy, but he is currently one of the most talked about players in Europe. After years of wandering, the Portuguese midfielder finally found his promised land at Sporting Lisbon. At this former club of Figo and Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno achieved an incredible performance in 2.5 seasons: 63 goals, 48 assists in 135 matches.
It didn’t take long for MU fans to realize Fernandes’ valuable qualities. The Portuguese midfielder became the Red Devils’ savior by adding what the team lacked the most: creativity and extraordinary spirit.
Almost immediately, Fernandes played a key role in turning around the Red Devils’ seemingly lost season. In addition to the goals and assists, the gesture of putting his hand to his mouth to imply “Shut up” directed at Pep Guardiola, the Man City coach awakened the pride that slept deep in the Red Devils’ hearts.
Solskjaer, in particular, may see Bruno Fernandes as the saviour of his Old Trafford job. The Norwegian tactician described the Portuguese midfielder as “a mix of Paul Scholes and Juan Sebastian Veron”, claiming that “his brain processes faster than most people” and praising his “mysterious qualities”.
“Before leaving, Bruno’s mother put 50 euros in his pocket in case he needed to buy anything there,” Peres, the Pasteleira coach, recalled. “It was the most she could give him.”
Coming from humble origins, Fernandes has seen loved ones leave their homeland in search of a brighter future. Some time after his father moved to Switzerland to work, his older brother, six years his senior, followed suit. A mediocre player, Ricardo soon hung up his boots and left home for England to work as a hospital cleaner. Now Bruno is leaving too, but in a different way.