The Belgium international has talked up the talents of his midfield counterpart ahead of this weekend's Manchester derby
Manchester City talisman Kevin De Bruyne has addressed comparisons with Bruno Fernandes, while admitting that the "wonderful" Manchester United star "makes football look fun".
Fernandes has had a huge impact on the Premier League since his €55 million (£50m/$67m) move to Old Trafford from Sporting CP in the winter transfer window.
The Portugal international immediately justified his hefty price tag by inspiring United to a third-place top-flight finish last term, scoring eight goals and laying on seven assists in his first 14 appearances.
The 26-year-old has picked up from where he left off in the early stages of the 2020-21 campaign, hitting 11 goals in 17 outings across all competitions, earning plenty of praise from supporters and experts along the way.
De Bruyne has been widely considered to be the best midfielder in the Premier League over the last few years, but similarities are now being drawn between the City playmaker and Fernandes - who picked up the player of the month award for November.
The two men will go head to head when Pep Guardiola's Blues arrive at Old Trafford to face Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Red Devils on Saturday evening, and De Bruyne has talked up the talents of his midfield counterpart ahead of that clash.
"He’s a wonderful player," the 29-year-old told Sky Sports.
"He came in and he gave United a different momentum.
"They were struggling last year, I know they had some games where they won against good teams but the consistency wasn’t there last year for them.
"That’s much improved this year and Fernandes is a big reason for that. He’s a guy who makes football look fun.
"We’re pretty similar in a way but I don’t compare myself to other players.
"I enjoy other players but I never compare."
There is only one point separating United and City in the league standings at present, with the former sitting in seventh on 19 points and the latter one place further back in eighth.
Both sides have at least one game in hand on all of the teams in the top six, but can ill afford to lose any more ground in this season's title race, with Tottenham and reigning champions Liverpool currently leading the way on 24 points.