Manchester United of England striker, Odion Jude Ighalo is stylishly shying away from attention and taking the spotlight of praise off himself, as he says fellow-new arrival at Old Trafford, Bruno Fernandes deserves more accolades than him, megasportsarena.com reports.
More superlatives are trailing after Ighalo, after he scored a stunning opening goal in United’s 5-0 win away to LASK Linz of Austria in the UEFA Europa League round of 16, but the former Super Eagles’ star says Fernandes equally deserves applause from fans and analysts.
Ighalo is singing praises for his pal, as the Portuguese playmaker has been involved in a total of seven goals for The Red Devils since his January signing from Sporting Lisbon of Portugal and, though his Nigerian pal now has four goals in just three starts with the club, the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations top scorer insists his teammates should be getting more commendations.
They were the only signings United’s boss, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer added to his team in January, with Fernandes joining on a five-and-a-half-year deal from Sporting while Ighalo arrived in a six-month loan spell from Shanghai Shenhua of China.
Dramatically, though, they had both previously played together at Udinese of Italy, such that Ighalo is relishing another pleasant reunion in the squad, and says he has always been aware of what the 25-year-old dazzling schemer can offer and how useful he could be for the team.
He went on to hail the qualities Fernandes has been able to display within a short time of his days at The Theater of Dreams, adding that he believes more is coming from the Portuguese midfielder, when he eventually settles down fully at Old Trafford.
The Nigerian star has scored four goals in three starts, eight games overall, since joining United, with the latest coming on Thursday, when Fernandes assisted him in netting a wonder strike against LASK , which Ighalo says is just a reflection of the great impact his pal brings to the team.
Ighalo told BBC Sport: “It’s not my first time playing with Bruno. I played with him at Udinese back in 2010. 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.
“I knew 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.
“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.”
