Fernandes hails ´unbelievable result´ in Europa League semi-final first leg

Manchester United skipper Bruno Fernandes was understandably delighted aft their 3-0 triumph distant to Athletic Bilbao successful the Europa League semi-final archetypal limb connected Thursday.

Fernandes scored a first-half brace arsenic United went successful 3 up astatine the break, portion the hosts had defender Dani Vivian sent disconnected aft giving distant a punishment and having been deemed to marque nary effort to play the ball.

Following the result, Bilbao’s hopes of returning to their location stadium for the last are hanging by a thread.

“You tin ne'er foretell a scoreline similar that. Very pugnacious team, the ambiance was crazy. I knew they were precise passionate, but ne'er knew it was similar this,” Fernandes told TNT Sport aft the match.

“The effect for america was unbelievable. We should propulsion a spot much successful that 2nd half, but we controlled the crippled and that is good.

“For us, it was superb to enactment connected the shot and they won’t property arsenic they preferred. If they property we could play done them. We were a small dilatory connected the ball, but they wanted to support the effect similar this to effort travel backmost successful the adjacent game.”

34 – Only Mohamed Salah (56) has scored oregon assisted much goals for Premier League clubs successful each competitions this play than Bruno Fernandes (34 – 18 goals, 16 assists). Talisman. pic.twitter.com/ombC7r1uEE

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) May 1, 2025

His brace connected Thursday took the Portuguese to 34 extremity involvements successful each competitions this play (18 goals and 16 assists).

It marks an awesome play for the Manchester United captain, who took until precocious October to nett his archetypal extremity of the play successful immoderate competition.

“I knew I was astir the thirties, but I didn’t cognize however overmuch exactly. It is simply a large portion of my crippled and I request to instrumentality that responsibility. The nine bought maine due to the fact that I scored 32 goals successful a season,” helium said.

“Sporting is monolithic club, but United is simply a planetary club. Unbelievable the attraction and unit we get.

“I consciousness the pressure. That’s the bully happening astir shot and that’s what we person to enjoy. When I decorativeness my vocation that volition spell distant and I volition beryllium overmuch much relaxed.

“When I dice I volition person a batch of clip to laic down with myself!”