Is Bruno Fernandes the best No. 10 in the Premier League ever? | OneFootball

Never mind the best in the Premier League right now…is Bruno Fernandes the best No. 10 the Premier League has ever seen?

We also have some Crystal Palace reaction, defences of Jordan Henderson and more. Mail us at theeditor@football365.com

Bruno the GOAT?

Now that Bruno Fernandes has broken the record for most assists in a single Premier League season, can we finally have an honest conversation about him being the greatest No. 10 the league has seen?

Because the lengths people go to deny him that status are genuinely bizarre to me. Strip away the tribalism for a second and be objective. Every team in the league takes Bruno in a heartbeat, and most managers build around him instantly.

And let’s stop pretending otherwise. Wirtz? Maddison? Eze? Guimarães? Cherki? Palmer? Bruno benches every one of them in that role. Creativity, output, availability, leadership (okay…maybe not), risk-taking — he delivers all of it at an elite level, year after year, often in dysfunctional United sides.

I said this in the mailbox earlier this season and people acted like I was chatting nonsense, but at some point the numbers, consistency and influence become impossible to ignore. You don’t have to like the petulance or the moaning, but personal irritation shouldn’t stop people from recognising greatness when it’s right in front of them. Gaptoothfreak, Man Utd, New York (If Roy Keane reads this, Bruno will probably have to clarify in three separate interviews that this email wasn’t “disrespectful”, just “misinterpreted”.)

Why is Carrick reduced to vibes?

Sorry Badwolf, didn’t you know he was able to beat all those teams and world-class tacticians because he played Bruno in the 10 and put his arm around Kobbie?

If you are in doubt do not worry! All the pundits, writers and broadcasters have confirmed this as the reason. Insane how much that party line has been shit out these past few months.

According to true master>apprentice relationship rules in football, as Carrick worked with Ole he is only allowed to employ ‘vibes’ and an arm on the shoulder. No need to look into Oles tactics either, he just had a decent playlist in the dressing room and brought back rondos.

Given our 2 tactically shittest managers seem to beat all the GOATs, maybe other teams should try vibes and logical positioning?

Amateur YT analysts over established media all-day. Moses (I forgot Fergie had no tactics either so 3 managers…. and Arteta-ball is visually more GOATSE than GOAT if were being honest but belated congrats Arse fans 😉

Crystal Palace for the night

This is why the Conference League exists.

What a night for them. Paul

…Crystal Palace might need to consider renaming themselves to Silverware Palace if they keep going at this rate.

An amazing achievement, pound for pound it is hard think of many English teams that have outperformed their relative spending for consecutive seasons. Very well done the Eagles. Parm from Gravesend

…Congratulations to Crystal Palace. Nice to see a club like Palace excite their fans by picking up a European trophy. And getting Europa League football next season. Eat your hearts out Forest.

Also shows the strength of the EPL, as two years in a row EPL teams wins the Europa and Conference Leagues.

Not sure that was the plan… Paul McDevitt

Capital stuff

Only clubs in a capital* have ever won the UEFA Conference League.

This is the first year that the losing club (Rayo Vallecano) even had a chance because both finalists were capital clubs.

Poor Fiorentina may not as well have bothered showing up to their two finals.

*Stretching the boundaries a bit in the case of Olympiacos. Jayraj (isn’t geography fun), MUFC

Defending Jordan Henderson

I am writing as a long-time football fan who has become increasingly uncomfortable with the tone and nature of your coverage surrounding Jordan Henderson following his move to Saudi Arabia.

Let me make something absolutely clear from the outset: this is not a defence of Saudi laws, nor an attempt to dismiss legitimate criticism surrounding human rights issues. People are perfectly entitled to disagree with Henderson’s decision or to point out contradictions between his previous public advocacy and his later career choices.

What I find deeply disappointing, however, is the repeated descent from criticism into outright moral grandstanding and personal vilification.

Terms such as “moral vacuum” and similar language do not read like football journalism anymore. They read like moral prosecution. There is a significant difference between saying:

“This move appears contradictory to Henderson’s previous public stance”

and

“This man is morally bankrupt.”

Your coverage often crossed that line.

What makes this especially uncomfortable is the obvious inconsistency within modern football itself. Saudi involvement is now deeply embedded throughout elite football:

Newcastle United’s ownership structure, sponsorships and commercial partnerships, broadcasters, competitions, governing bodies, and the wider football economy itself. Yet the outrage directed at Henderson has often felt more personal, emotional, and vindictive than the scrutiny applied to institutions that have structurally normalised the exact same financial relationships.

In fact, the message many readers are left with is strangely perverse: had Henderson never publicly advocated for LGBTQ+ causes at all, he likely would have received far less abuse. In other words, the very fact he once tried to stand for something appears to have made him a more acceptable target for prolonged public shaming.

That should give any serious journalist pause.

There is also something deeply unhealthy about the increasingly personal nature of modern football discourse. Public criticism of decisions is one thing; sustained moral pile-ons against an individual’s character are another entirely. Football media frequently speaks about mental health awareness, online abuse, and the toxic nature of public shaming, yet at times participates in the very same culture when it decides certain figures are acceptable targets for prolonged ridicule and contempt.

Human beings are imperfect and inconsistent. Footballers are no exception. But there is an increasing tendency within football media to position writers as moral arbiters handing down judgments on people’s character rather than analysing football, context, or decisions proportionately.

Criticism is fair. Disagreement is fair. Even disappointment is fair.

But the sustained tone of contempt toward Henderson from parts of the football media, including Football365, has at times felt sanctimonious, selective, and unnecessarily dehumanising.

Football journalism is at its best when it informs, challenges, and provokes thought. It is at its worst when it mistakes moral superiority for insight. Leonard (LFC) Singapore

…It’s one thing to question the selection of a coach for a National team; But Will Ford calls a professional who has won it all in club football a ‘ haggard face of a moral vaccum’ And Football 365’s editor is letting this get published on a site that’s read globally?

Either Will Ford is F365’s Nepo kid who is entitled for a column or more every week or else the salaries won’t be paid or Will Ford has F365 held to a ransom.

Either ways, I have loved this forum since years; but this is a new low for the F365. Disgraceful.

Either hold your writers accountable or change the management. What happened to expressing opinions without trashing a human being’s name (Why is this a Henderson bashing anyway!?)

But looks like it’s going to be the same editor (or a team) who approved Ford’s article on being utterly gross on a respected athlete; so this mail won’t find its way to you the reader. Mihir. (Oh btw, Will Ford, England aren’t going beyond the R16; doesn’t matter who plays in the Midfield)

Why would Luis Enrique join Liverpool or Man Utd?

I’ve noticed in recent weeks fans of various Premier League clubs discussing Luis Enrique’s future and honestly it has me bemused. Liverpool fans (hypothetically if Slot was sacked) and Man Utd fans (before Carrick got the full-time gig) mulling over whether he’d be a good fit for their club – but why on earth would he want to leave PSG any time soon? They’re one of the wealthiest clubs in the world so I’m assuming he’s reasonably well paid, they’re playing amazing football and winning trophies, and they also have an insane age profile in their squad which could see them dominate in Europe for years to come.

As far as I know he went to 1 game at Anfield to sample the atmosphere on the Kop, and that’s seemingly convinced Liverpool’s fans that it’s been his lifelong dream to manage their club. And a Man Utd fan in today’s mailbox is even hoping PSG lose on Saturday to prove Man Utd right for not going for him instead of Carrick – that is some insane logic and delusion right there.

I might be completely wrong and he may well want to test himself in a new country at some point in his career, but surely working with the quality players he has at his disposal at PSG would currently be the most attractive proposition for any manager in club football. David Horgan, Dublin

Nagelsmann might fancy Liverpool though

Peter, Andalucia, I’d expect that Nagelsmann has probably already been quietly sounded out by Liverpool.

Everyone’s expectation seems to be that Slot will be sacked if we have a bad run in the Autumn and then would be a perfect time to pick up a manager who’s been in the World Cup in the summer. No idea if he’d want it or would want to stay in charge of the national team, but it’s not a crazy shout.

I’ve heard lots of people say it’s like Rodgers all over again, but when he was replaced by a German coach who’d taken a bit of a break after his last gig it didn’t work out too badly. Tom, Andover

Am I special or is it just Liverpool?

Lived here in LA two decades now, a city not unfamiliar with the occasional drive-by shooting… so catching a stray this morning (when I haven’t even wrote in) feels par for course. While Keith Reilly didn’t so much as name me, he’s fired unmistakably in my direction. Rather than blindly fire back as I’m admittedly sometimes apt to do, I went all inward and introspective instead. Am I truly shouty in here, and is my support of my football club in some way more offensive than anyone else supporting theirs ?

In uni I’d wanted to be a journalist. I ended up doing something (definitely) more boring but (hopefully, considerably) more lucrative. A teacher in a composition class back then had told me in order to be a writer, be well-read yourself, be reasonably learned, command the language, and write from what you know. Hey, one from four, not bad if I can do that last bit reasonably well I thought.

David Foster Wallace was an incredible writer but maybe he had some demons in his life, who knows. JK Rowling’s made a living penning utter tripe that I’m nowhere a fan of, but perhaps she’s a lovely, lovely lady in real life, erm, who knows. I’m definitely not shouty in life nor do I aim to be so here. I’ve got love for this mailbox and visited it for an age before I had time and inclination to start writing in.

I don’t think I’m any more winning, special or charmed than everybody else, I just think my football club is. Eric, Los Angeles CA (And Keith Reilly’s letter was a cracking one to be fair.)

World Cup prices in Mexico?

Sorry I may have completely missed this, but what is the situation with ticket prices for the World Cup games staged in Mexico (and to a lesser extent Canada)?

While I think it is disgusting that FIFA has alienated so many fans from what should be an ‘anyone’s welcome’ sporting event (I know this isn’t the case, but it is the pretence the World Cup is based on) due to ticket prices, they do at least have an argument that ticket prices for games in the US are in line with events of a similar magnitude, such as a music concert. To be very clear, I don’t agree with or accept this, but it is a justification that corporate suits often hide behind, so it adds, at least in their eyes, a valid reason for the obscene prices.

However, surely they can’t use this logic in Mexico? I’ve only been there once years ago, but I remember it as being pretty cheap in comparison to the US. Mexcio ($14k) has a GDP per capita that is much lower than the US ($85k) and still substantially lower than Canada ($54k)*, so surely, following their own guidance, FIFA will sell a much higher % of tickets at a much lower price for games in Mexico, with fans of teams playing in Canada also benefiting? Obviously they won’t, and they will argue that ticket prices are set at a competition level and cannot vary by location, but surely that goes against their own justification?

I’m still excited for the World Cup – I understand some fans are turned off by the outright greed, Trump, contempt for fans, halftime show etc., but once the football kicks off I forget/ignore that and just enjoy the absolute bounty of football. But the actions of the people running the game make it increasingly painful to do so.

*Figures relate to 2024, taken from the World Bank