Former Manchester United assistant coach Steve McClaren has drawn a fascinating comparison between two of the club's most influential captains, claiming Bruno Fernandes and Roy Keane share a "nightmare" quality that made them both absolute terrors in training.
McClaren, who served under both Sir Alex Ferguson and Erik ten Hag during two separate stints at Old Trafford, had a front-row seat to the brilliance—and the intensity—of both players. Under Ferguson, he helped steer United through one of the club's golden eras. More recently, he was part of Ten Hag's staff as the team lifted the Carabao Cup and FA Cup before departing in July 2024 amid INEOS's coaching reshuffle.
When you've coached two of Manchester United's most iconic captains, you're bound to notice a few similarities. And according to McClaren, Keane and Fernandes share a fire that can be both a gift and a handful.
"We had one spell when we said to Roy, 'You've got to calm down a bit,'" McClaren told The Athletic. "Because it was beginning to be a problem. Through the trouble he got into, he used to miss five or six games a season. He tried to calm down, and he was rubbish. So we said, 'Forget that, be yourself, it's all right, we'll miss you for five games, don't want you to be a pussycat on the field.'"
That same relentless edge? McClaren sees it in Fernandes every single day.
"And Bruno is the same. When I used to have to be the referee in training, he's a nightmare. It's just passion."
That passion has translated into stunning numbers this season. Fernandes has already bagged eight goals and provided 19 assists—just two shy of breaking the Premier League single-season assist record jointly held by Kevin De Bruyne and Thierry Henry. His playmaking has made him a strong contender for Premier League Player of the Year, and McClaren says he saw it coming long before anyone else did.
"I used to see that every week in training. Better than that. I'd think, 'How did you see that?' That's what Bruno has."
Keane hasn't always been Fernandes's biggest fan, occasionally calling out what he sees as petulance on the pitch. But if McClaren's insight is anything to go by, the two legends might have more in common than Keane would ever admit—and that's exactly what makes them both unforgettable leaders in the red of Manchester United.