Fernandes publicly questions Carrick's tactics after Man United's humiliating 4-1 loss to Como

Bruno Fernandes publicly questioned Michael Carrick’s tactical decisions after Manchester United were beaten 4-1 by Como in the Champions League, a result that stretches the club’s winless run in all competitions to seven matches and intensifies scrutiny on their manager.

Nico Paz was the standout performer for Cesc Fabregas’s side, scoring twice and adding an assist as Como outran, outfought and outplayed United across the pitch. It stands as one of the worst European performances in the club’s history.

Fernandes, who was substituted off on 67 minutes — a rare occurrence for the ever-present captain — was pointed in his post-match assessment. He singled out United’s decision not to press man-to-man as the root cause of Como’s comfort on the ball.

“It’s a decision from the staff to not press man to man and sometimes leave space behind and try to get the ball, wait for them,” Fernandes said. “But sometimes when you give space to these teams they get confidence.”

When pressed on whether he was saying Carrick got his tactics wrong, the Portuguese captain stopped short of a direct accusation while leaving little ambiguity. “That’s on the manager and staff to see, not me. Sometimes you have to be more brave under pressure, take the risk of pressing high and making them uncomfortable.”

He added: “A team that plays through the middle with small connections, if you give them too much time and space then they can hurt you out wide. As you saw with them, the centre-back was coming to mark me in my own half. We need to do that as a team but we were unable to.”

Substitute Joshua Zirkzee scored a consolation in injury time, but it did nothing to mask the scale of the collapse. Midfielder Youri Tielemans was equally blunt in his assessment. “It was a very bad match from us,” he said. “The fans come out here and we put out a non-performance like this — it’s not good enough from us.”

Former United striker Dimitar Berbatov was similarly unsparing. “It was a terrible, terrible night,” he said. “A terrible game for United, nothing was happening and Como outplayed them in every way possible — from the goals, the possession, the confidence. Everything was there for Como.”

Carrick now faces a pivotal home fixture against Bournemouth on Sunday, with his position at the club increasingly uncertain.