New Delhi, April 19 (IANS) As Manchester United took a big step towards UEFA Champions League qualification after win over Chelsea, former midfileder Owen Hargreaves has hailed Bruno Fernandes as the architect of the victory and labelled him the “best player in the Premier League”.

The Reds won at Stamford Bridge for the first time since 2020 as Matheus Cunha’s goal towards the end of the first half earned a 1-0 victory in West London. Bruno set up the only goal with his 18th assist in the league this term and received the Premier League’s Player of the Match trophy for another impressive all-round performance.

Meanwhile, Fernandes is now just one assist away from equalling the record for a Premier League season, and he still has up to five more games to go in this campaign.

“Bruno Fernandes, he will be up for player of the year this season, he just creates big moments,” Hargreaves told TNT Sports. “He was the architect today, best player on the pitch by a mile and obviously with Cunha finishing up, it feels like Champions League football is coming back to Manchester United. He is the best central midfielder in the Premier League.”

“Kevin de Bruyne was the best for a while but it is Bruno right now. Right now I think he is the best player in the Premier League, it depends, he has had the best performance over the whole season.

“I think [the award] will depend on who wins the title, so I think if it is Arsenal, it will be a Declan Rice or a Gabriel, if it is not then I think it will be Bruno Fernandes. He has been fabulous in terms of creation and assists, and again a bit of experience,” he added.

The win over Chelsea saw Man United strengthen their grip on third place and are now 10 points clear of the sixth-placed Blues with five games remaining in the battle to secure the five coveted places in Europe’s premier competition next term.

Asked how big the win was, Bruno told TNT Sports after the game: “It’s an amazing feeling for us. We had to bounce back – it’s not just about Leeds, there were two games that we didn’t win. But we knew we had to make a great performance today because Chelsea are a very good side.”

“It was very important for us because we know our aim is to get in the top four and they are the closest one to the top five. Making distance is important for us and that’s what we need,” he concluded.

Man Utd now turn attention to facing seventh-placed Brentford at Old Trafford on April 27, in what will be another tough test for Michael Carrick’s side.

–IANS

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