Hat-trick and an assist: Fernandes becomes the round's star
Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has been named the best player of the second round of the English Premier League. As reported by Sport RBC.UA, citing the official Premier League website, the Portuguese midfielder was the standout performer in the match against Ipswich Town, completing a hat-trick and adding one assist to his tally. Thanks to his performance, the Red Devils secured a convincing comeback victory with a score of 5:2, even though, according to review outlets, they conceded first at the start of the match before completely turning the game in their favour.
Third hat-trick of his English career
It is worth noting that this hat-trick is only the third for Bruno Fernandes during his entire time in England. For a player who has been a key creative force for United for many seasons, such multi-goal matches remain a rarity, which makes this achievement particularly notable against the backdrop of his consistently high but usually more 'collective' contribution to the team's play.
69% of fan votes: who finished behind the Portuguese
In the traditional Premier League fan poll, Fernandes crushed his rivals, taking 69% of the votes. Behind the Portuguese were such stars of the round as Erling Holland, Ryan Cherki, Morgan Gibbs-White, Nico González, João Pedro and Konstantinos Tzolakis. In parallel, according to the expert 'Goal Index', Fernandes, rated 9.8, was named the best player of the United – Ipswich match itself, confirming that his performance was recognised both by fans and by the analytical system.
Last season's record in the background
The context deserves separate mention: last season Fernandes received the player of the week award six times, a figure that is an absolute league record. Thus, the title of best player of the second round of the new championship merely confirms the Portuguese's status as one of the most influential players in the Premier League, whose form at the start of the season is once again at its peak.
Context of the week in other leagues
Against the backdrop of this achievement, the Ukrainian UPL also drew up the results of its fourth round and named a symbolic team of the week, in which the best player was a midfielder who recorded a hat-trick of assists. Thus, on a week that opens and continues the football championships, hat-tricks and multi-goal performances have become a common hallmark for top players across different leagues.
