Roy Keane rages at Bruno Fernandes and calls Manchester United players ‘imposters’

Keane clashed with Ian Wright as he claimed ‘talent is not enough’ and tore into Fernandes over his leadership as captain

Roy Keane fumed that Bruno Fernandes’ “talent is not enough” as the former Manchester United skipper tore into the current captain’s leadership.

The 30-year-old Portuguese playmaker has arguably been the most successful signing of the post-Sir Alex Ferguson and was handed the armband in July 2023.

Head coach Ruben Amorim praised “special player” Fernandes for his role in Wednesday’s hard-fought 3-2 win against Ipswich, which came days after his key part in United’s 2-2 comeback draw at Everton.

But that is not enough for exacting former captain Keane, who claimed the players were “f****** imposters” as he got into an explosive argument with Ian Wright about Fernandes on The Overlap podcast.

“Save us? They’re 15th in the league and he’s saving them? Praise the lord,” the ex-Republic of Ireland international said.

“You have to have a starting point. I go back to it all – talent is not enough. Bruno’s a talented player, but talent’s not enough.”

Former Arsenal star Wright’s attempts to defend Fernandes further enraged Keane, who added: “You talk to me (about) who you were in a dressing room with. ‘Tony Adams was this’, ‘Tony Adams was that’. Yeah, because he was a fighter. Bruno’s not a fighter.

"Talent's not enough to play for a big club!" 😡

Roy and Wrighty clash over Bruno Fernandes’ impact as Man Utd captain! 😳

Is this the most explosive moment in Stick to Football history? 👀 pic.twitter.com/vzSQNcRIWV

— The Overlap (@WeAreTheOverlap) February 27, 2025

“You’ve got young players. You have to look at somebody and go ‘I like what he does’.

“They all can’t put the ball in the top of the net from 25 yards, I get that. But you want someone who is going ‘lads, are you with me?’”

Wright claimed that “if Bruno’s not there, United are in the relegation places” and temperatures rose as Keane returned to former Arsenal captain Adams.

When Wright said that was the skipper he was used to, Keane screamed: “Yeah, yeah, of course. That’s what the captain we expect!

“Was Tony Adams the most talented player in that Arsenal dressing room? So, why do you look up to Tony Adams and go ‘listen, I’ve got a lot of time for him’?

Roy Keane enjoyed success as Manchester United captain (Phil Noble/PA)

“And what did he do with his leadership? Leadership is action. Leadership to me is about action.”

United sit 14th in the Premier League after Amorim’s 10 men defeated Ipswich and return to action on Sunday at home to Fulham in the FA Cup fifth round.

The Red Devils face Real Sociedad in Spain next Thursday in the first leg of their Europa League last-16 tie.