‘I knew he was going to change the dynamic of the team’: Odion Ighalo hails Bruno Fernandes and vows ‘you’re going to see more’ once fellow Manchester United new boy has settled
Odion Ighalo has praised Bruno Fernandes‘ start to life at Manchester United but he believes the Portugal international will flourish once he settles in England.
Both players arrived at Old Trafford during the January transfer window with Ighalo sealing a short-term loan move from Shanghai Shenua and Fernandes signing a five-and-a-half year contract in a £68million transfer from Sporting Lisbon.
The pair previously played together at Serie A club Udinese and the Nigerian believes Fernandes’ passing ability will ‘change the dynamic’ of Ole Gunnar Solksjaer’s side.
‘It’s not my first time playing with Bruno. I played with him at Udinese back in 2010,’ Ighalo told BBC Sport.
‘He’s a great player. He has vision. He’s the guy who wants the ball because he can do something fantastic with it if you give him space. He’s a good passer of the ball and he’s what this team needs to score goals.
‘You’re still going to see more and better from him because he is still getting used to the Premier League. When he’s finally settled Bruno Fernandes is going to do well in this team.
‘Before I came here I knew Manchester United were looking at him and I was hoping they would get him because he is a good player and I knew he was going to change the dynamic of the team.
‘He’s not going to have the best game every time but what he is going to bring to the team is going to be unbelievable.’
The 30-year-old has now scored four goals in eight United appearances after opening the scoring in the 5-0 hammering of LASK in the Europa League round of 16.
The first leg took place behind closed doors at Linzer Stadion to prevent the spread of Coroavirus. The second leg is scheduled to take place next Thursday and it is not yet clear whether fans will be able to attend the fixture.
