Lee Sharpe believes Bruno Fernandes still has a lot more to do to prove himself as one of the best players in the Premier League.
The Portuguese star has been widely lauded since joining Manchester United in January 2020, and has scored 28 goals for his side in all competitions so far this season.
But Sharpe, who won three Premier League titles as a United player, has criticised Fernandes for giving the ball away too often and insisted he is still a level below Kevin De Bruyne.
'The jury is still out for me on Bruno Fernandes in terms of him being one of the very top players in the League,' Sharpe told GentingBet.
'He does something magical; he’ll spray a pass somewhere or score a decent goal, or a free kick, and then he’ll spend 10-15 minutes of the game giving the ball away really cheaply.
'I’m not sure whether that’s just a form thing that he’s going through - or whether it’s actually him as a player.
'So, I’m reserving judgement at the moment whether he’s one of the best in the league – I think De Bruyne is right up there in the top three players in the league, I’m not sure Bruno gets into that top three.
'I mean he’s scored plenty of goals again, a lot of penalties, but for me, when I’ve watched the games – he just gives the ball away a little bit too cheaply at times – when you really need him to hold the ball up or keep the ball.'
Fernandes will have the chance to win his first trophy as a Manchester United player when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side face Villarreal in the Europa League final.
United have not won a trophy since winning that competition four years ago, when they beat Ajax 2-0 under Jose Mourinho.
Sharpe claims that this maybe be his former side's best team in a long time and that the future could look bright for the club.
'This is potentially United’s best team in a decade, some of the performances this season have certainly shown that,' Sharpe said.
'But I think with the consistency levels, that’s still questionable – with the talent and the players they’ve got offensively, sometimes you expect a little bit more.
'I think Ole’s building on the consistency thing. I think the fans not being there hasn’t helped that but they’re heading in the right direction that’s for sure.'
Source: m.allfootballapp.com