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Bruno Fernandes must be running on fumes since the Man Utd star has played more minutes than anyone in Europe’s top five leagues and more than any outfielders in Europe’s top 15 leagues.
Including club and international matches, here are the top 10 outfield players to have played the most minutes this season…
1) Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United) – 4410 minutes
Total games: 51
Club games: 44
International games: 7
Manchester United looked spent for much of their FA Cup win over Fulham and some players have a good excuse for being knackered. No more so than the overworked Fernandes, and he still managed two goals. The Portugal star has played 316 minutes more than any other outfield player in Europe’s top 15 leagues, never mind the top five. The next closest player is Union Saint Gilloise goalkeeper Anthony Moris and he’s 195 minutes short of Bruno’s workload this season.
2) Harry Kane (Tottenham) – 3895 minutes
Total games: 45
Club games: 38
International games: 7
Overall, Kane has the fifth-highest number of minutes in Europe’s top 15 leagues, including goalkeepers, with Moris and Benfica duo Nicolas Otamendi and Odysseas Vlachodimos between the England striker and Fernandes. Tottenham’s new manager after the international break could do with giving Kane a break but without him, Spurs are f***ed. Even with him…
3) Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea) – 3881 minutes
Total games: 48
Club games: 38
International games: 10
It’s been a busy season for English football’s record signing. He started it by moving to Benfica from River Plate; made 27 appearances in Portugal; went to Qatar; won the World Cup; joined Chelsea and he’s been an ever-present ever since, playing all but nine minutes since he made his Blues debut.
4) Rodri (Manchester City) – 3727 minutes
Total games: 46
Club games: 40
International games: 6
Pep Guardiola bought Kalvin Phillips last summer in the hope of giving Rodri the occasional breather but Manchester City have felt unable to be without their midfield glue. Guardiola has started Rodri for every game he’s been available in the Premier League except the 6-3 derby win over United when he had a calf problem. He’s been rested twice: for the home game against Copenhagen in the Champions League; and the FA Cup win at Bristol City. Poor Kalvin.
5) Vinicius Jr (Real Madrid) – 3716 minutes
Total games: 44
Club games: 38
International games: 6
The Brazilian’s robustness has to be commended since he has been by far and away the most-fouled player in Europe this season. For Real Madrid, Vinicius Jr has been fouled 94 times, 19 more than the next highest, Lazio’s Mattia Zaccagni.
Read more: The 10 most fouled players in Europe in 2022-23: Grealish, Neymar, Vinicius…
6) Lionel Messi (PSG) – 3671 minutes
Total games: 42
Club games: 32
International games: 10
The GOAT isn’t easing off, playing 32 games for PSG either side of dragging Argentina to World Cup glory. In those 32 games, Messi has had a hand in 35 goals, scoring 18 and laying on 17. In Ligue 1 (13) and Champions League (four), he’s got equal number of goals and assists. Not bad for a 35-year-old. He will probably win the Ballon d’Or.
7) Danilo (Juventus) – 3654 minutes
Total games: 42
Club games: 38
International games: 4
The Juventus right-back has featured in every Serie A game this season and is yet to be subbed, with the only occasion he didn’t complete 90 minutes coming in a 2-2 draw with Salernitana during which he came off the bench. Danilo, 31, has become one of Max Allegri’s most important players, captaining the side for much of the season, which few would have predicted when he moved from Man City as a makeweight in the Joao Cancelo deal.
8) Granit Xhaka (Arsenal) – 3628 minutes
Total games: 45
Club games: 38
International games: 7
Once again, no one could have predicted how crucial Xhaka would become to Arsenal when he was returning fire while being crucified by the home supporters at the Emirates. But one player has played more minutes for Arsenal so far this season: Gabriel Magalhaes (3238)
9) Cody Gakpo (Liverpool) – 3590 minutes
Total games: 45
Club games: 38
International games: 7
Most of Gakpo’s work has been done for PSV, with 24 of his club games coming before he made his January move to Liverpool. He has made 14 appearances since, scoring four goals while offering no assists, in stark contrast to his form in Holland, where he scored 13 goals and offered 15 assists.
10) Federico Valverde (Real Madrid) – 3575 minutes
Total games: 44
Club games: 39
International games: 5
Chelsea are apparently willing to break the bank for Valverde but face two problems: Valverde doesn’t want to go; and Real have no intention of packing him off on his way, Why would they? The Uruguayan has been crucial to Carlo Ancelotti, playing fewer minutes only than Vinicius Jr. Ancelotti’s third-most used player, Thibaut Courtois, is 449 minutes short of Valverde’s total.
