Who topped our assists chart in 2022/23?

According to FBRef.com, the Portuguese midfielder laid 13 goals on a plate for his team-mates across all competitions in 2022/23.

That was one short of the 14 he registered in 2021/22, during what was, on the whole, an underwhelming term for Fernandes and United.

He notched 18 assists during 2020/21 and finished just one behind Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford, with eight, in his opening season – despite only arriving from Sporting Club in January of 2019/20.

Fernandes’s startling productivity saw him pass 100 goal involvements for the Reds earlier this year, a figure he was clearly delighted to achieve at the time:

“Obviously I want to get them, I want to score goals and I want to assist, because my position demands that from me,” he said in February.

“I think it’s a really good mark for me and obviously I want to go for more.

“I want to keep doing those numbers, having more and even better numbers, if that’s possible and to reach the best level of myself and help the team.

“The main thing for me has always been helping the team in the way the manager wants and the team needs and the way I can help. If it’s with numbers, it’s with numbers, and if it has to be with different things, it will be with different things.

“But I will be lying if I said I didn’t want to score any more goals or assist, because I want to. I know that if I do that in the future, I will help the team.”

In total, 18 different United players were credited with an assist this season and new-boy Christian Eriksen also made it into double figures, setting up 10 goals.

Marcus Rashford was next up, on nine, meaning the homegrown forward ended on an impressive 39 goal involvements from 56 outings.

Casemiro and Luke Shaw (six each) also regularly played the final ball before the goal, while Fernandes, Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho were the only Reds to do it twice in the same game.

Of those who started more than 20 matches, only goalkeeper David De Gea and defenders Victor Lindelof, Lisandro Martinez, Tyrell Malacia and Raphael Varane were not credited with an assist, showing it was a real team effort.

Facundo Pellistri will always remember his solitary set-up of the 2022/23 season.

The Uruguayan was only on the Old Trafford pitch for seven minutes on debut against Charlton Athletic back in January, but he was a lively presence throughout and threaded a ball through to Rashford to score our second in an eventual 3-0 victory.

*All assist stats courtesy of FBRef.com.