Manchester, Jan 24 : Amidst heavy criticism surrounding Manchester United skipper Bruno Fernandes, head coach Ruben Amorim has backed his captain and claimed his team is lucky to have a player of his calibre. The Portuguese midfielder has not reached the standards set by him in previous years having scored five and assisted six goals in the league so far. His attitude has also been put under question after having been sent off thrice this season. He certainly stepped up against Rangers on Thursday as he scored a 92nd-minute winner for his club.

"He is a top player and people talk a lot about his frustration and always talk a lot about his arms in the air, sometimes it is not a good thing to see but you have to see the other side. When we are under pressure, he is always the guy who wants the ball and he is always available, which is so important.

'Especially in the Premier League and then, he can run, and he runs a lot, he can fight a lot. He has two sides and I have to help him manage both situations. We are lucky to have a player like Bruno Fernandes. Sometimes he makes mistakes, like me last week, but he is really important and he has passion. This is so important to be a football player," said Amorim in a press conference.

Amorim also revealed that Manchester United must wait on the fitness of three defenders before taking on Fulham this weekend. Noussair Mazraoui was left out of the matchday squad for the 2-1 win over Rangers in the Europa League as a precaution, after sustaining a knock during the Premier League loss to Brighton & Hove Albion.

The Moroccon international may be available for the kick-off but Amorim is concerned that Matthijs de Ligt and Leny Yoro were both experiencing some pain during the European tie.

Both centre-backs were withdrawn and will be assessed ahead of the Craven Cottage clash. "I don't know," Amorim replied when asked about the pair "Leny has a pain and Mata [Matthijs] was a bruise from a touch. Leny was a little bit tired, he is playing more at this moment, so we have to be really careful and we will see. I don't know."

/IANS