Having hit the ground nimbly and sprinting off to a magnificent start at Old Trafford, ex Sporting Lisbon midfielder Bruno Fernandes has made a stunning start to life with the Red Devils since his £47million in January.
Within a short period, he had already come up against long-time friends like Manchester City star Bernardo Silva, who was among the few who advised him to move to United.
But buddies or not, Fernandes insists it’s war on the pitch, describing himself as a “warrior, because for me every game is a battle.”
The 25-year-old added: “You need to go out to the game and just understand you need to beat your opponent. With all of the respect, because you need to have respect for your opponent, but you need to beat them.
“If you don’t beat them, they will beat you. It doesn’t matter who is on the other team. If it is a friend, because I have friends playing in the Premier League, I don’t care. At that moment I will be the biggest enemy they can have.”
His fighting qualities have been well augmented by the creative aspect of his game to give him the success he has achieved at United so far.
And he has revealed that legendary former Barcelona Andres Iniesta is a player he tries to model his game on, while Ronaldinho and Cristiano Ronaldo are also inspirations.
“The one I liked to watch and follow was Iniesta, because Iniesta is a mix between an eight and a 10,” he said.
“It is a way I can do better, between eight and 10.
“It is the guy who always likes to have the ball, take the risks, and I think Iniesta was one of the best in the world.
“For me, it was impressive how Iniesta finished his career without the Ballon d’Or. With everything he won, it is difficult for me to understand.
He added in an interview with MUTV: “I have a lot of players I like to see. For example, in my first few years, the player I think is the one everyone liked and always will like is Ronaldinho.
“For me, he is the player with the capacity to take you and put you in front of the TV, and you will stay for hours. For hours.
“Because he had that energy and happiness. He was happy in everything he did. You enjoy it when you see guys playing like that, so for the first few years Ronaldinho was my favourite player.
“After this, I have already said that Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the players. As a professional player, he is the best you can follow.”