Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has praised Facundo Pellistri’s performance against Bayern Munich, insisting the winger has earned his place in the starting XI.
The Uruguayan international made his first start of the campaign on Wednesday night as United lost 4-3 in the opening match in their Champions League group. The close scoreline may have somewhat undervalued the hosts.
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Erik ten Hag lacks options on the right side of the field because Jadon Sancho, Antony, and Amad Diallo are all injured, and there have been increasing calls in recent weeks for Pellistri to be given opportunities.
Up against Alphonso Davies, the 21-year-old worked hard on an otherwise difficult evening with Fernandes impressed with his contribution.
‘Pellistri is one of the players that deserves his chance and deserves a lot of credit for everything he has done for the team,’ Fernandes said.
‘He is someone who is always available, always training hard and someone who deserves his chance.
‘He did well today, he did the job the manager asked him to do and we are all happy for him because he really deserves to get his chances.’
Ten Hag explained that despite initial reservations, Pellistri was handed a starting role to help deal with the threat of Davies, also claiming the Canada international ‘is not a great defender’ in his pre-match comments.
‘It’s not that we’ve given it to him [the chance]. He deserves it,’ the United boss said.
‘I thought it was not the right time as he came back from a tough journey in South America. We already had two players in Casemiro and Licha Martinez, coming from that journey but I think he’s ready for it.
‘Now he has to prove it,” he asserted. “It’s a great game and also he actually fits tactically very good as they have a tough player there in Davies with a lot of speed. He is the one who can match that speed.
‘That’s why we play him [to go up against Davies]. He can match him defence wise and he’s also capable to be a threat.
‘He is a very good dribbler, Pellistri, and Davies is not a great defender so we expect something from him.’