MEMO TO BUDDING MIDFIELDERS: WATCH BRUNO FERNANDES!

MY ADVICE to any young, aspiring midfielders out there would be to study Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes.

Look at how he strikes the ball when shooting from distance. Look at how he creates such a dip and swerve that it makes his shots more difficult to stop.

It is not conventional, and it is not a fluke. It is done by design in order to bamboozle the goalkeeper.

We saw that against Tottenham on Friday, when he was the best player on the pitch for United.

The instant Fernandes (right) gets the ball, he does not delay and he does not look sideways, either. He instead looks at how he can create an immediate goalscoring opportunity or, even better, shoot himself.

I’ve told my boy to watch how Fernandes only needs half a yard to shoot from whatever angle.

Frank Lampard was the same, and that is largely why the now Chelsea manager holds the record as the top- scoring midfielder in Premier League history. It comes with a lot of practice and repetition on the training pitch. Half a yard, shoot. Half a yard, shoot. Half a yard, shoot.

It might frustrate your forwards on game day. Maybe there will be times when Marcus Rashford says he was in a better position and should have been played in. Maybe Fernandes will be accused of greediness on the odd occasion.

But it will be worth it for his goal return. In 2018-19, Fernandes’s last full season for Sporting Lisbon, he got 32 goals and 18 assists in 53 games. That is what Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wants from him now.

United want those numbers, and they want to see a fruitful partnership form with Paul Pogba.

I could see United were crying out for Pogba on Friday and when he was brought off the bench it changed the game. It will be interesting to see if he starts on Wednesday against Sheffield United. In all of my time in football, I’ve never known a player to divide opinion as much as Pogba. But if you don’t think this World Cup winner can play and is capable of doing special things, then I’m afraid you don’t know football. That half-volleyed pass against Spurs into the path of Rashford was world class. If there had been a crowd, it would have drawn oohs and ahs. Pogba’s introduction was a real positive, and there are already signs that he and Fernandes can click. There is an understanding there, and this could become a midfield double act that United fans fall in love with.