Bruno Fernandes is the Football Writers’ Association’s Footballer of the Year for 2025/26. – Not particularly surprising when you see the turnaround that Manchester United have carried out this season. In fact, they are guaranteed a place in the Champions League next season.
The Manchester United captain was named the best player in England in a vote among the members of the FWA, a group made up of approximately 900 football journalists.
Read: Has success coach Andoni Iraola at the top of his wish list
Fernandes has been a unifying figure for the Reds throughout the season, and he has led the way as a role model in helping the team qualify for next season’s Champions League.
Bruno has eight goals and 19 assists in 32 Premier League appearances at the time of writing, and he is about to equal the record for most assists in a season – the record currently stands at 20 and is held by Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne.
Our number 8 has been particularly inspiring in the second half of the season, as the team has won 10 of 14 games under Michael Carrick and secured a European Cup spot with three games left to play.
The road so far for Bruno Fernandes
Bruno Fernandes joined Manchester United in January 2020 from Sporting CP, in a move that was initially met with both hope and scepticism. He was supposed to fill the void left by club legends such as Eric Cantona, Roy Keane and Wayne Rooney – and it didn’t take long for him to do just that. Already in his first full season, he was named both the club’s and the fans’ best player, and he has since been the clear leader on the pitch. With his exquisite passing feet, tireless work capacity and ability to show up at crucial moments, Fernandes has carried United through thick and thin. From dramatic overtime wins to goal celebrations against arch-rivals, he has delivered time and time again. Now, several years later, he finally stands with an individual award that many believe he has deserved for a long time: Footballer of the Year in England.
Read on F7: One step closer to signing Newcastle star Anthony Gordon
The achievements have caught the attention
These achievements have caught the attention of writers across the country, making him the first United winner of the award since Wayne Rooney in 2010.
He is the ninth Red to receive the prestigious award since it was instituted at the end of the 1947/48 season.
Johnny Carey was the second recipient, the following year, while Sir Bobby Charlton and George Best won it in 1966 and 1968 respectively.
Eric Cantona (1996), Roy Keane (2000) and Teddy Sheringham (2001) were all honoured for their crucial roles in championship seasons, before Cristiano Ronaldo won two years in a row in 2007 and 2008.
Carrick says on Manchester United’s website: “He’s a team person”
Carrick believes the news is a well-deserved recognition for the Portuguese’s enduring quality and stability.
“It’s fantastic,” he said.
“I’m overjoyed for Bruno, and I think he fully deserves it. With such an award being considered over such a long period of time, I think whoever wins it fully deserves it. I think Bruno, with the season he’s had, and definitely since I came here, the way he’s performed and the impact he’s had on the group, has been fantastic.
“So yes, fully deserved, and I’m overjoyed that he has won such an award – and that he is one of ours.
“I don’t necessarily think he’s a player who is driven by individual awards. I think he’s a team person. He shows it in his leadership, and he is the captain who leads his group.
“It just shows that stability over a long period of time, the level of performance against some fantastic players in our league. That he receives this award is brilliant.
