Bruno Fernandes officially named 2026 Footballer of the Year

Bruno Fernandes has been one of the leading names in discussions surrounding the 2026 PFA Player of the Year award.

This is following another outstanding campaign for Manchester United, both individually and collectively.

Pundits including Roy Keane and Gary Neville have recently debated whether the United captain deserves to win that honour.

Despite the early struggles, he has helped guide the club to Champions League qualification with three games to spare.

Now, Fernandes has officially picked up another major individual award.

The Football Writers’ Association have confirmed Bruno Fernandes as their Footballer of the Year for the 2025/26 season after his exceptional performances throughout the campaign.

The Portuguese midfielder has registered 8 Premier League goals and 19 assists in 32 league appearances this season.

His influence has been massive.

No player in the Premier League has created more chances than Fernandes during the 2025/26 campaign.

The 31-year-old has consistently delivered despite the pressure surrounding Manchester United across the season, with three different managers in the dugout.

Fernandes is also now chasing Premier League history.

The United captain currently sits on 19 league assists.

That leaves him just one behind the all-time single-season Premier League assist record jointly held by Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne with 20.

Some supporters briefly believed Fernandes had already equalled the record during Manchester United’s dramatic 3-2 win over Liverpool.

Benjamin Sesko scored the second goal at Old Trafford, but replays showed Liverpool goalkeeper Freddie Woodman got a slight touch before the finish, meaning Fernandes was not officially awarded the assist.

So the chase continues.

With three league games still remaining this season, Bruno Fernandes now has a huge opportunity to break one of the Premier League’s longest-standing creative records.

Adding that achievement would provide even further recognition for what has already been a remarkable campaign.