Bruno Fernandes has stated his intention to follow in the footsteps of a long list of Manchester United legends following his bright start to life at the club.
The Portuguese playmaker only arrived at Old Trafford in January but has already made a significant impact on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side, directly contributing to seven goals from nine appearances across all competitions.
Fernandes has regularly cited compatriot and former United winger Cristiano Ronaldo as his main inspiration, and he has now picked out a host of other eminent names from the club's past whom he is eager to emulate.
"I have already said this a lot of times but it was a dream come true. For me, ever since I was a kid, it was a dream playing for Manchester United. Manchester United was and is one of the biggest clubs in the world. You look in the past and when I'm younger, you look at the players who played for Manchester United," Fernandes is quoted as saying by The Mirror.
"You see the biggest stars in the world. You see the best players in the world. You have players from everywhere and also, we talked a lot and I told you about Cristiano. I looked at Manchester with more interest when Cristiano was here, because it's normal when you have Portuguese players in some teams, you look at them more than other teams.
"But at that moment, I started to look at Manchester in a different way because you see Cristiano but then you also see the team and you have Paul Scholes, you have [Wayne] Rooney, you have [Ryan] Giggs and you have Roy Keane, [Eric] Cantona before.
"You have a lot of players... I don't know... [Ruud] van Nistelrooy... I can stay here for hours saying all the names of players for Manchester United. Also Nani, who's played with me. You have big stars playing here. Joining Manchester United was so easy because since I was a kid, it was a dream, so for me, doing this step, a big step to the Premier League and Manchester United was perfect."
Fernandes is yet to taste defeat as a United player, with Solskjaer's side going into the enforced break on an 11-game unbeaten run across all competitions.
Barney Corkhill
