Edited by Paul Elegbeleye
Table of Contents
Arsenal Win Premier League Title After 22-Year Wait as Man City Draw You would quite agree that the 2025/2026 Premier League, which ended on May 24th, was an iconic season.
Each year, one player usually stands out as the Player of the Year. Towards the end of this season’s EPL, the question arose again.
Whom would it be this time? Everyone wanted their favourite player to win the MVP award, however, only one player gets that recognition.
According to the Premier League, 20 clubs and 528 registered players participated in the EPL. This included three promoted clubs from the Championship: Leeds United, Burnley, and Sunderland. However, in this multitude, one name stood out. Who is that? Why did he stand out?
That name is Bruno Fernandes. Bruno was officially named the EA Sports Premier League Player of the season on Saturday, May 23rd 2026. This presentation was made just a day before Manchester United’s final game for the season.
He also won the Football Writers’ Association (FWA) Footballer of the Year award. Premier League reported that “Fernandes has been the driving force in a resurgent Red Devils side who have secured third place and a UEFA Champions League spot.”.
The Premier League official website also reported that “Fernandes is the first Man Utd player to win the FWA award since Wayne Rooney back in 2009/10.”
Manchester’s official website acknowledged that Fernandes has already been crowned the Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year for the fifth time, and retained his Players’ Player of the Year title. Interestingly, he didn’t just win the EA Sports Premier League Player of the season, he also won several other awards.
Background
According to Wikipedia, Bruno Fernandes is a Portuguese football player. He was born in 1994. He plays for the Manchester United.
Wikipedia described the club’s captain, Bruno, as one of the best attacking midfielders in the world. He has represented his country at the Under-19, Under-20, Under-21 and Under-23 games.
In 2020, he became the second-highest-paid Portuguese player. This was during the period Manchester United signed him for €55.
The superstar is the first Manchester United player to win the Premier League’s MVP trophy since Nemanja Vidić in 2011. That is over a decade!
All the Angles: Fernandes’ record-breaking 21st assist
Upon receiving the award, the superstar expressed his gratitude to his team, acknowledging he wouldn’t have come that far without them.
The Premier League reported his speech.
“Thank you, guys, obviously this is an individual award, but it comes because we had a very good season together,” Fernandes said to his teammates after receiving the award.
“Without your help this was impossible.”
A Picture of His Statistics This Season
Beyond the historical records Bruno set, he maintained elite goal-scoring consistency as a midfielder.
He recorded:
21 Assists: The new all-time Premier League single-season record. He achieved an assist milestone that seemed unachievable.
8 Goals: He swooped the ball into the net 8 good times.
29 Goal Contributions: he had a direct involvement in almost half of his team’s league goals. These were high-stakes matches.
132 Chances Created: He is 43 points ahead of his nearest competitor in the top flight.
Breaking Record
Before now, the highest number of assists was 20. Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne clung to the legendary record until this season. It stood as an unbeatable record. However, on the final day of the season against Brighton and Hove, Fernandes etched his name into history by breaking the record. EPL history will always remember the number, 21.
Summary
Accolades also must be given to the manager, Carrick Michael. Under his management, Manchester United moved from years of inconsistency to secure a third-place finish and a return to the UEFA Champions League. This is a wonderful development for the team.
According to the official Manchester United Report, “Bruno becomes the seventh player to receive it while representing United, following in the footsteps of Peter Schmeichel, Dwight Yorke, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Cristiano Ronaldo, Nemanja Vidic and Wayne Rooney.” He didn’t just break the records of the number of assists a season, he stood out on every level. Congratulations to Bruno Fernando.
Also Read: Arsenal Win Premier League Title After 22-Year Wait as Man City Draw
