Graeme Souness has renewed his criticism of one of Manchester United's biggest stars, claiming that they 'threw the towel in' when the going got tough. 

Manchester United are gearing up for a season that will surely define Erik ten Hag's reign at the club, with his second campaign falling well short of his promising first term in charge. 

The arrival of Ineos at the helm of all football operations has also generated some optimism, with some fans keen to see what impact the new regime can have. 

They have already brought in two new faces in Joshua Zirkzee and Leny Yoro for a combined £88.5million, but it is one the club's more established stars that has seen Souness double-down in his criticism for. 

Speaking on William Hill's Three Up Front podcast Souness once again singled out United captain Bruno Fernandes, and slammed the Portugal international's leadership skills - or rather the perceived lack thereof. 

'When you look at leaders in the modern game, one example is at Manchester United which is one of the biggest institutions in world football,' Souness said. 

'The club captain is Bruno Fernandes. When they were 3-0 down against Liverpool a couple of seasons ago, he just threw the towel in… he's the captain! If anything, he should still be contributing, running around with enthusiasm and helping his teammates.

'I don't think Fernandes can change that aspect of himself – it's part of him. When he's shrugging his shoulders and throwing his arms around, that's just him.'

He added: 'I think leaders in the modern game tend to hide. They don't want to put themselves out there, be held accountable, or stand up and take the blame. The most recent example was at the Euros.

'When England were having a tough time with media it was (Jude) Bellingham – one of the youngest members of the group – who was up there talking to them on behalf of the team. He should've been one of the last ones to go up because it should've been the more senior players.'

It comes after Souness had previously claimed Fernandes 'goes missing' in big games, and is 'obviously not a leader' in the wake of the game last year.  

Throughout his captaincy at Old Trafford Fernandes has found himself on the receiving end of some backlash over his leadership of the side. 

That has coincided with a desperate campaign for the Red Devils, although that can not in its entirety be attributed to the Portugal star. 

He has frequently been seen flailing his arms or looking at the sky somewhat petulantly, or sulking during games. 

However, there is no denying that he is his side's best player, and the most important piece of Ten Hag's set up. 

The Dutchman handed Fernandes the armband last summer, taking it away from Harry Maguire who at the time had been linked with a move away, and was not as regular a fixture in the starting side. 

Legendary former Red Devils captain Roy Keane even suggested that Fernandes should be stripped of the armband last term. 

However Fernandes has hit back at his critics, telling A Bola back in May that he is actually just a very 'intense' player which makes him 'difficult to understand'. 

'This [being demanding] often conveys the image of bad temper, because it comes from the way we experience the game, from how we are so intense... and intense players are difficult to understand,' he told A Bola.

'I have this notion that there are probably a lot of people who don't like certain things I do, but in every locker room I go to, I always say that if a player doesn't feel comfortable with the way I talk to him, with the way I convey the message to you, I am open to not doing it or to trying to do it in another way.

'But have you ever had these episodes in the locker room, have they ever come to you and told you directly, for example, 'don't talk to me like that'?

'I never had that 'don't talk to me like that' confrontation. I have had the perception of players who feel very down if someone talks to them or if I talk to them. 

'It's a little natural. I don't think much about this issue. Many times it goes well, many times it goes badly. There are people who like it, others who don't like it. There are people who see pointing as bragging, because for us in the field it is difficult to convey messages in the way we are here talking. It's practically impossible.

'Normally, we have to use our arms more, gesture. We are too far away from each other to be able to understand the messages we want to convey to each other.'