Wayne Rooney calls Bruno Fernandes’ comments after the Hull City loss ‘strange’
Wayne Rooney called Bruno Fernandes’ comments after Manchester United’s opening day loss “strange,” and criticized his old team for being too “passive” against Hull. Newly promoted Hull, led by Sergej Jakirovic, had a dream start to the Premier League with first-half goals from Semi Ajayi and Nobel Mendy, beating United 2-0.
It was a tough day for Michael Carrick’s squad, who struggled to create chances and seemed caught off guard by Hull’s strong pressing early on. After the game, Bruno Fernandes said United made the “same mistakes” away from home as last season, pointing out that they gave the ball away too easily.
“The Hull goalkeeper had the most touches in the first 20 minutes,” Fernandes said. “We need to press more and play with more aggression.”
On Match of the Day, Rooney shared his views on Fernandes’ remarks. “That’s a strange comment from Bruno. United finished third last season and got into the Champions League. To improve, they have to be a team that others fear playing against.”
Rooney thinks Hull’s game plan really bothered United, similar to how they struggled against AC Milan in a recent pre-season match. “Hull used a wing-back system like Milan did. United had a hard time dealing with it. Maybe Hull learned from that, and fair play to them because they looked really strong today.”
He added, “Hull played a mid-block and didn’t let United pressure them much. United only won the ball twice in Hull’s final third. They need to press with more energy and aim to win the ball back quickly. Today’s performance was just too passive.”