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Bruno Fernandes is continuing to play through an injury that was first disclosed during international duty, Manchester United boss Michael Carrick has confirmed.
Carrick's impressive interim tenure was largely built on Fernandes, who accumulated 13 of his record-breaking 21 assists under his management to haul United from mid-table mediocrity back into Champions League contention.
That level of performance has not carried over into this season. Fernandes has failed to contribute a goal or assist in five of United's six Premier League outings, with a hat-trick and an assist in the 5–2 thrashing of Ipswich Town doing most of the heavy lifting in his statistics.
Portugal head coach Jorge Jesus revealed during the international break that Fernandes had been playing through a "complicated" injury, which may explain his dip in form since the World Cup.
"People perhaps don't appreciate it, but it happens quite often," Carrick admitted after Fernandes struggled to make an impact in Saturday's 1–1 stalemate with Tottenham Hotspur. "Players carry knocks all the time.
"I probably played around 80% of my matches with some kind of problem. It's far from ideal, but it's something you can manage."
As things stand, however, "managing" that problem is proving to be anything but straightforward for Carrick.
The No-Win Situation Facing Carrick
There is a fairly straightforward way to help Fernandes through this injury. A stint on the sidelines would do him a world of good.
Fernandes's injury is clearly not too serious, meaning a few weeks of rest would likely restore him to his physical best. The dilemma for Carrick, however, is that if Fernandes sits out for a few weeks, there is no certainty he would still be in the dugout by the time the midfielder returns.
The Portugal international is United's standout performer and, with all due respect to the rest of the squad, that is hardly a contentious claim. You need your key players to pull you out of the kind of slump the Red Devils currently find themselves in, so dropping Fernandes from the matchday squad when it is not medically essential would be an enormously controversial call—the type of decision that could spell the end for a manager.
Carrick's trust in Fernandes is already evident. He has featured for every minute in the Premier League this season and even played the full 90 in the Champions League win over Sabah, despite the match being effectively over by the interval.
The only fixture this season in which Fernandes did not start was the Carabao Cup loss to Brighton & Hove Albion, where Carrick turned to his captain from the bench in a desperate bid to rescue something from a game that had already highlighted the dangers of attempting to cope without the team's talisman.
Should Carrick rest Fernandes over the next two weeks, he would sit out five matches in total: two Champions League fixtures against Atlético Madrid and Como, along with Premier League clashes against Leeds United, Bournemouth and Chelsea.
All of those, given the current circumstances, are must-win games for Carrick, who understands the necessity of continuing to rely on Fernandes. The Portugal international is unlikely to push back against remaining in the starting lineup, clearly being the type of player willing to give everything for the club he cherishes.
Fernandes is pushing himself to the limit. Until the pressure on the club begins to ease, neither he nor Carrick will see any alternative way out of this predicament.