Pogba: Fernandes would be Ballon d´Or contender if he played for Man City

Paul Pogba claims Bruno Fernandes would be a top-three contender for the Ballon d’Or if he played for Manchester City rather than Manchester United.

Fernandes has played a key role in United’s turnaround under Michael Carrick this term as the Red Devils have all but confirmed their return to the Champions League.

The Portuguese midfielder leads the Premier League in assists this season with 18, two short of Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne’s single-season record.

10 of Fernandes’ 18 assists in the league this season have come away from home; he is one of four players to do so in a campaign in the competition after Muzzy Izzet in 2003-04 (10), Cesc Fabregas in 2014-15 (11) and Mohamed Salah in 2024-25 (11).

The 31-year-old has also scored eight goals in the English top-flight this season; only Erling Haaland (30) has directly contributed to more Premier League goals in 2025-26.

Pogba, who played with Fernandes for two-and-a-half seasons at Old Trafford, believes his former team-mate would get more recognition if he played for a team such as City.

“Do you think Bruno, if he’s in the other team, he’s not in the top three, a Ballon d’Or player?” Pogba said on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast.

“You put him in City, he’s [in the] Ballon d’Or [top] three, he’s in the Ballon d’Or.

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“Bruno Fernandes, with the stats, the season, the way he plays and everything, but when you don’t win, you don’t think about you, it’s not. It’s like, this is life, this is football.

“I know he’s not physically the same as me but he cannot jump and recover the ball as I would do, but he can do everything.

“He can do everything. Like I said, Bruno Fernandes, in other big clubs, is in the top three Ballon d’Or, punto final.

“Football lovers will always respect Bruno Fernandes. That you like his style is a different thing.

“If you like his style, the way he plays or not, this is different opinions. But football players, they will understand that this guy is a top player.”