Manchester United have had the update they wanted on Bruno Fernandes, although perhaps with one small catch.
The midfielder missed Portugal’s 2-1 win over Norway on Sunday after struggling with a physical problem.
Manager Jorge Jesus had already revealed Bruno arrived from Manchester United carrying the issue. He’d apparently been playing with pain for around three matches, with the problem restricting him on the pitch.
That naturally raised some concern about what condition he’d be in when he eventually returned to Old Trafford. But things are already looking much better on that front.
Bruno back in full training
The doubt didn’t last long. Record reported on Tuesday morning that Bruno is now considered recovered.
Portugal travelled from Oslo to Malmö on Monday and trained there ahead of Thursday’s meeting with Denmark in Copenhagen.
Bruno was back with the group and completed the session “without any kind of limitation”. So there were no restrictions on the exercises he could do or how long he could train.
The Manchester United captain had previously been doing specific recovery work in the gym, having been left out completely against Norway.
A Bola has the same information. They say Bruno showed “no sign of physical issue” on Monday and is available to Jorge Jesus again.
Considering the concerns over the weekend, United will obviously be happy with that.
The injury appears to have responded well to treatment and, for now at least, there seems little danger of Bruno returning to Manchester still unable to train properly.
| Stat | 2024/25 | 2025/26 | 2026/27 so far |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appearances | 57 | 37 | 7 |
| Minutes played | 4,933 | 3,203 | 557 |
| Goals | 19 | 9 | 4 |
| Assists | 18 | 22 | 1 |
| Goal contributions | 37 | 31 | 5 |
Portugal could put him straight back in
Whether Manchester United would prefer Bruno to get a little more rest is another matter.
Record says he now has a strong chance of returning directly to Portugal’s starting XI against Denmark on Thursday. A Bola also sees that as a possibility.
That would come only four days after he sat out the Norway match because of the problem.
There’s some context worth remembering here too. This wasn’t just a minor knock that suddenly appeared over the weekend. He’d been dealing with the pain for weeks and the Portugal manager even felt it had affected his performance against Wales.
Resting him against Norway appears to have done the trick, which is certainly encouraging. Still, Manchester United probably wouldn’t mind if Portugal remained a little cautious.
There’s another game against Norway on Sunday before Bruno returns to his club. With the midfielder only just back to full training, a few more quiet days would likely have been better.
