Bruno Fernandes accuses Roy Keane of lying over assists record controversy

Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has accused Roy Keane of telling a “lie” after the former United skipper misquoted him on a podcast while criticising his pursuit of the Premier League single-season assists record.

Fernandes broke the outright record — previously shared by Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne — by taking his tally to 21 assists in Sunday’s 3-0 win at Brighton. He had equalled the mark a week earlier during United’s 3-2 victory over Nottingham Forest.

Speaking on The Overlap podcast after the Forest game, Keane claimed Fernandes had said: “A few times, I probably should have shot but I made them passes” — framing it as evidence that the Portugal international was prioritising personal milestones over the team. “How can your mindset of a footballer be going into a match to be about an individual record?” Keane said. “He won’t be winning trophies, not with that mindset.”

However, Fernandes’ actual post-match remarks were notably different. What he said was: “There were probably moments today when I should have passed instead of shot. I’m very happy for the assist, but more than that, I’m happy for the win and to finish the season on a high.” The two versions are near-opposite in meaning.

Fernandes addressed the dispute on The Diary of a CEO podcast. “I don’t mind criticism,” he said. “I’ve always taken criticism from everyone and anyone and I never reply to anything or whatsoever. What I don’t like is when people lie about things — and in this case what Roy Keane said is a lie, because either he saw some other interview or he can’t say that I said one thing that I’ve just not said. Luckily for me, everything is on record.”

Fernandes added that he had contacted former United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to obtain Keane’s phone number so he could address the matter directly. “I’ve always showed a lot of respect for Roy Keane and for everything he’s done for the club,” he said. “What I don’t like is that people make their own words on what I say and it’s not true.”

Keane appeared to stoke the dispute further on Monday, posting on Instagram: “Too much attention makes a donkey think he’s a lion” — a message widely interpreted as directed at Fernandes, though Keane did not name him explicitly.