Fernandes the centre of attention - but what next for Man Utd captain?

Bruno Fernandes was the centre of attention in every sense on a historic night at Croke Park.

One of the biggest cheers of the evening from a sell-out crowd for the first 'soccer' match between English teams at the 82,500-capacity home of the Gaelic Athletic Association came after an hour of Manchester United's pre-season game with Leeds, when Fernandes' name was read out as one of five substitutes being made by head coach Michael Carrick.

The place would have erupted if either Fernandes had not had an effort ruled out for offside, or his shot from the edge of the area had gone in, not flicked off the bar.

The hero worship was taken too far when first one fan, then another, then another raced on to the pitch to get a selfie. With chaos threatening to take hold and 90 minutes played, the match was called to a halt without injury time, and went straight to penalties.

Amazingly, Fernandes missed, although Noussair Mazraoui kept his cool a few minutes later to secure a 5-4 victory, after the game itself had been brought to a premature conclusion at 1-1.

The result was irrelevant compared to preparations for the new season.

But the reaction for Fernandes underlines his hero status among United fans, which was established long before his nine goals and record 21 assists ensured a third-place finish in the Premier League last season and secured a return to the Champions League.

Of all United's squad, Fernandes is the one worshipped by fans.