An estate agent who is the last person to save a penalty from Manchester United star Bruno Fernandes has offered some advice on stopping the Portuguese midfielder’s spot-kicks.
Tottenham Hotspur’s Hugo Lloris, Leicester City’s Kasper Schmeichel, Chelsea’s Willy Caballero and Aston Villa’s Pepe Reina are among the keepers beaten from the spot by Fernandes on his run of 17 successful penalties.
The last goalkeeper to save a Fernandes penalty was Miguel Soares, a semi-pro who was between the sticks for Loures in their Portuguese cup defeat to Sporting Lisbon in October 2018.
Although Loures lost the tie 1-2, Soares was able to deny Fernandes from the spot. He has now offered some pointers to more illustrious members of the goalkeepers’ union.
The 29-year-old reckons his decision to feint one way and dive the other scuppered Fernandes’ technique of waiting to see where the keeper is going to dive before deciding where to put his penalty.
Soares told Mais Futebol: “The save was a great moment. The secret was the small movement I made to the left.
“Bruno looks at the keeper when he takes a penalty, so I did the same to him. I feigned to dive to the left, and went to the right.
“I wanted to make Bruno take his decision as late as possible. I didn’t want to make his life easier.
“We took Sporting all the way to extra time, and still gave them a scare before they won 2-1.
“I hope Bruno can continue converting penalties in the Premier League.
“He’ll miss one eventually, but I hope it won’t be for a while – it is better for me.
“I didn’t manage to get his shirt after the Sporting game, but I would love to have one of his Manchester United shirts now.
“Although I was his opponent on the day, I am a big fan of his.
“I realised I wasn’t making enough money from football alone, so I have also worked as a property consultant since 2018.
“Life would be very hard for my family if I didn’t have this second job.”
You can see Soares’ save from Fernandes in the video below.
Fernandes joined United from Sporting in a £67m deal in January. He has scored six penalties for the Red Devils in that time.
