Solskjaer explains why he replaced van der Beek with Bruno Fernandes in Man Utd 3-1 defeat by Leicester

March 21, 2021 Manchester United's Luke Shaw, Edinson Cavani, Bruno Fernandes and Scott McTominay prepare to come on as substitutes [REUTERS]

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said midfielder Bruno Fernandes needed a break after the Portugal international was left out of the starting lineup for Sunday's 3-1 FA Cup quarter-final defeat by Leicester City.

Kelechi Iheanacho scored twice and Youri Tielemans added another as Brendan Rodgers' side beat United to set up a semi-final clash with Southampton.

Fernandes, who been a stand-out performer for United with 23 goals and 13 assists in 45 games in all competitions, replaced Donny van der Beek in the 64th minute.

Explaining the decision to leave Fernandes out of the starting 11, Solskjaer said the 26-year-old had played a lot of football this season.

"He's also a human being, he's played a game every three or four days really," he added.

"I know Bruno wants to play but sometimes you make decisions for the benefit of both the team and him."