Graeme Souness singles out Man United captain Bruno Fernandes for ‘throwing in the towel’ as he SLAMS lack of leaders in modern football – saying most ‘tend to hide’ in brutal critique

Graeme Souness has once again criticised one of Manchester United’s biggest stars, claiming they ‘threw in the towel’ when the going got tough.

Manchester United are gearing up for a season that will undoubtedly define Erik ten Hag’s time at the club, with his second season falling far short of his promising first term as manager.

The arrival of Ineos at the helm of all football operations has also created some optimism, with some fans keen to see what impact the new arrangement could have.

They have already signed two new faces in Joshua Zirkzee and Leny Yoro for a combined fee of £88.5million, but it is one of the club’s more established stars who Souness has been particularly critical of.

Speak about William Hill’s Three Up Front podcast Souness has again hit out at United captain Bruno Fernandes, criticising the Portugal international’s leadership qualities, or rather lack thereof.

Graeme Souness has previously claimed that Fernandes is ‘clearly not a leader’

“If you look at leaders in modern football, Manchester United is an example. They are one of the greatest institutions in world football,” Souness said.

‘The captain of the club is Bruno Fernandes. When they were 3-0 down against Liverpool a few seasons ago, he threw in the towel… he is the captain! He should still be contributing, running around with enthusiasm and helping his team-mates.

‘I don’t think Fernandes can change that aspect of himself – it’s part of him. When he shrugs his shoulders and puts his arms around himself, that’s just him.’

He added: ‘I think leaders in the modern game tend to hide. They don’t want to expose themselves, be held accountable or stand up and take the blame. The most recent example was at the Euros.

‘When England were struggling with the media, it was (Jude) Bellingham – one of the youngest members of the group – who stood there and spoke to them on behalf of the team. He should have been one of the last to go up because it should have been the older players.’

This comes after Souness previously claimed Fernandes was ‘missing’ in important games and was ‘clearly not a leader’ after last year’s match.

During his captaincy at Old Trafford, Fernandes faced much criticism over his leadership of the team.

That coincided with a desperate campaign for the Red Devils, although that cannot be entirely attributed to the Portuguese star.

Fernandes can often be seen waving his arms, sulking or acting moody on the pitch

Souness is certainly not the only expert to highlight Fernandes’ leadership mistakes in recent seasons

Erik ten Hag handed Fernandes the Man United captain’s armband ahead of the start of last season

He is often seen waving his arms, looking a bit moody at the sky or sulking during games.

However, there is no denying that he is the best player in his team and the most important part of Ten Hag’s team.

The Dutchman handed Fernandes the captain’s armband last summer, taking him from Harry Maguire, who was linked with a move away at the time and was not a regular starter.

The legendary former captain of the Red Devils, Roy Keane, even suggested last season that Fernandes should be stripped of his captain’s armband.

Fernandes has responded to his critics, however. In May, he told A Bola that he is actually just an “intense” player, which makes him “difficult to understand.”

‘This [being demanding] often conjures up the image of a bad mood, because it comes from the way we live the game, from how intense we are… and intense players are difficult to understand,’ he told A Bola.

‘I feel like there are probably a lot of people who don’t like certain things that I do, but in every dressing room I go into I always say: if a player doesn’t feel comfortable with the way I talk to him, with the way I get the message across, then I’m open to not doing it or to trying it in a different way.

“But have you ever had moments like that in the locker room? Have they ever come up to you and say to you directly, for example, ‘don’t talk to me like that’?

Fernandes denied questions about his leadership, insisting instead that he is simply ‘intense’

“I’ve never had that ‘don’t talk to me like that’ confrontation. I’ve seen players who felt really down when someone talked to them or when I talked to them.

‘It’s a bit natural. I don’t think much about this problem. Often it goes well, often it goes badly. There are people who like it, others who don’t like it. There are people who see pointing as bragging, because for us in the field it’s difficult to get messages across in the way we talk here. It’s practically impossible.

‘Normally we have to use our arms more, gesture. We are too far apart to understand the messages we want to convey to each other.’