Bruno Fernandes has been named the PFA Player of the Year, celebrating a record-breaking season with Manchester United in 2025/26.
The Portuguese maestro smashed a new Premier League record with 21 assists, surpassing the previous benchmarks set by legends Kevin De Bruyne and Thierry Henry. In May, Fernandes was also recognised as Football Writers' Association (FWA) Player of the Year.
Voting for the PFA awards is conducted by fellow professional footballers, and Fernandes was up against stiff competition, including Ryan Cherki, Erling Haaland, Gabriel, David Raya, and Declan Rice in the final six.
Speaking candidly about his achievements, Fernandes said:
This season has been special for me on a personal level. I am very proud and grateful to everyone who has helped me.
I hardly thought about the assist record until people started talking about it a lot. Of course, when you're getting close to it, you begin to think about it.
I’m really happy because an assist means someone is scoring. And if it’s me providing the assist, then most of the time it’s Manchester United finding the net.
But we’re not playing tennis or competing individually. We’re playing football as a team, for the club and our supporters. Nothing is more important than that.
That kind of responsibility is good; it’s something to enjoy. Of course, dealing with that pressure isn’t always easy. But I'd rather feel this kind of pressure than none at all.
In addition to his PFA accolade, Fernandes was named in the symbolic PFA Team of the Season, joined by notable players like David Raya, Gabriel, Nico O’Reilly, William Saliba, Jurriën Timber, Declan Rice, Ryan Cherki, Erling Haaland, Antoine Semenyo, and Iggy Thiago.
Meanwhile, Nico O’Reilly of Manchester City clinched the award for Young Player of the Year.
