Emmanuel Petit has launched a stunning rant on Manchester United – and labelled captain Bruno Fernandes a footballing ‘diva’.
Arsenal and France legend Petit believes Erik ten Hag shouldn’t shoulder all of the blame for United’s demise – because some of his senior stars are hiding and letting him down.
Petit has accused Marcus Rashford of being mentally weak and said England teenager Kobbie Mainoo should replace Fernandes as captain, because the Portuguese sets the wrong example for his team-mates.
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United have made a woeful start to the new season after losing two of their opening three league games to pile the pressure on Ten Hag. And talking to topoffshoresportsbooks.com, Petit said: “For me, Bruno Fernandes is a player that highlights the problems at Manchester United.
“Most of the time, I don’t like the way he behaves on the pitch. He acts like a diva. He doesn’t help or encourage his team-mates when the chips are down.
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“When Manchester United are suffering, he’s always crying; always showing his disappointment. That is not what you expect from your captain. You’re expecting more encouragement, leadership. Someone that brings positivity.
“United’s best players have been the likes of Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo. It would be a bold move, but If I’m Ten Hag, maybe I would make a strong decision and appoint the future of the club as my captain.
”Mainoo is young, but he’s English. He’s establishing himself in the national team. He’s the pride of the fans at Old Trafford.”
Petit, who won the league title with Arsenal in 1998 as part of the Double, as well as the World Cup with France in the same season, also savaged Rashford. He added: “When I look at some of these players, I’m thinking, ‘Where have they been for the last two seasons?’
(Image: Getty Images)
”Marcus Rashford, he must work on his mind and his emotions. Every time he receives a kick or takes a knock, he doesn’t recover.
“He doesn’t respond, and he’s not the only player that doesn’t respond in the right way to moments of adversity at the football club.
“The problems at Manchester United are not down to Erik ten Hag solely. I think he should be very upset about the behaviour of some of his senior players.
“I want to see senior players taking some responsibility. We’re talking about some players that have won absolutely everything in the game; huge, huge medals, and they’re giving him nothing.
“Ten Hag has made mistakes, of course he has, but he’s been let down by some very experienced players far too often.”