Manchester United legend Andy Cole has credited January signing Bruno Fernandes with inspiring his new teammates to reach their "A-game".

Fernandes only joined the Red Devils towards the end of the January transfer window, but he has already had a marked impact on the team with three goals, four assists and no defeats in his nine outings.

The Portuguese playmaker was rewarded with the Premier League Player of the Month award for February - his first month in the division - and Cole was full of praise for United's newest fan favourite.

"Mentality, that's massive in football. Confidence as well. Once you've got your confidence people start believing in each other," Cole told the Manchester Evening News.

"We can talk about Fernandes coming in, he's done extremely well and it's looked like he's galvanised the rest of the players as well to start playing their A-games.

"He's done it, he's started to bring the best out of a few of the other players, which is important."

United were on their best run of form since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was appointed on a permanent basis before the coronavirus pandemic brought the 2019-20 season to a halt.