Fernandes deployed in unfamiliar wide role as Zirkzee admits he must fight for Carrick's trust

Bruno Fernandes was shifted out of his customary central playmaking role as Portugal manager Jorge Jesus deployed the Manchester United captain on the left flank in a 4-1-3-2 formation during Sunday’s 2-1 Nations League victory over Norway, with PSG’s Vitinha taking over as the primary creator.

Fernandes, 32, stepped in as captain in the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo and adapted well to the unfamiliar position, completing all four of his long passes and posting an 85% passing success rate. He also registered six passes in the final third before being replaced by Nuno Tavares in the 90th minute — a performance that contributed to Portugal’s fourth consecutive Nations League win.

The positional experiment will be of interest to Carrick, who is preparing to welcome his international players back ahead of United’s Premier League fixture against Tottenham on Saturday, 11 October. Carrick’s side head into that game under pressure following a 1-1 draw with Fulham and a Carabao Cup third-round exit against Brighton.

Meanwhile, Joshua Zirkzee has conceded he must do more to secure a regular starting place at Old Trafford. The 25-year-old forward was a late addition to the Netherlands squad after Brian Bobbey was injured against Germany, and went on to score in a 2-1 win over Serbia on Sunday — his first international appearance since 2024.

Zirkzee has managed just 70 minutes of league football for United this season, operating largely as a substitute, and acknowledged the call-up from Netherlands head coach Xavi came as a genuine surprise given his limited playing time.

“At the moment, that means I am mainly coming on as a substitute,” Zirkzee told ESPN. “And in the end, I have to do something about that myself, even if it isn’t easy. Even so, it was still quite a big surprise that the coach called me up.”

With the international break entering its final week, Carrick will be hoping both players return in form as United seek a result against Spurs to ease the early-season pressure building at Old Trafford.