Ten Hag and Rashford defend Fernandes despite calls to strip him of captaincy

was heavily criticised for his conduct at Anfield during Sunday’s 7-0 defeat against Liverpool. Manchester United captain pushed the linesman out of the way in one incident, and his body language was criticised by United fans and media after the match.

Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville said Fernandes' behaviour was embarrassing, and there have been calls in social media to strip him of the vice-captaincy.

In his press conference ahead of Thursday’s match against Real Betis in the Europe League, Ten Hag defended Fernandes and insisted that he would remain the captain when Harry Maguire doesn't start games.

"Yes, definitely,"

Ten Hag said.

"I think he's playing a brilliant season, he's played an important role in the position that we are.

"He's giving energy to the team, running a lot with intensity, in the right way. He's pointing and coaching players, he's an inspiration for the whole team.

"No one is perfect, everyone makes mistakes. I'm really happy to have Bruno Fernandes in my team and I'm happy with him as our captain with Harry not on the pitch.”

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also defended his teammate and said he doesn't have anything negative to say about Fernandes.

Rashford said:

"I love playing with Bruno, as you can imagine. He's the perfect player to play with. He's been a good leader for us, even when he's not captain, which is always a good sign.

“He's [Bruno] helped other players become better leaders and the reality is that we can't be an organised team in terms of just one leader being captain. He's done a lot for us.

"I don't have anything negative to say about Bruno. As the manager said, nobody is perfect. I support him and I'm 100% behind him."

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