WHY MANCHESTER UNITED SIGNING CASEMIRO MAY MAKE SENSE
Friday 19th August 2022 by Tom Ball
You can only ever safely judge a transfer before it happens, tentatively, especially when it comes to Manchester United. Even the signings that do make sense never seem to work for them. Nevertheless, acquiring Casemiro is smart, if the signing is being made for certain reasons.
'Signing' and 'smart' rarely go in the same sentence when it comes to Manchester United. Their brief pursuit of Adrien Rabiot left much of the football world baffled, confused, but hardly surprised. However, the recent emergence of a deal to sign the 5-time Champions League-winning defensive midfielder is one that engages whatever optimism any Manchester United fans have left.
Much is being made of the reported fees and wages - details that are very unreliable during preliminary reports. However, for a player of Casemiro's stature, reputation and quality, the money should not be read into too much. Much of Manchester United's wage structure issues come from them giving big contracts to younger players.
However, much like Raheem Sterling being made the highest earner at Chelsea, Casemiro being on significant wages is not something he has not warranted. Who out of that United team deserves more significant wages than him? You can only really make an argument for his two former Real Madrid teammates Cristiano Ronaldo and Raphael Varane. Casemiro will likely see his career tail off during/after his tenure at Manchester United, and the club are likely to have no issue letting him see out his contract.
While United's wage structure and transfer spending do not reflect their performance on the pitch in the slightest, it is essential to note that huge spending almost has to be the case if you compete in the Premier League.
Manchester City's spending is in the same ballpark as their neighbours, and their wage bill is the highest in the league. They do not win four of the last five league titles without that financial outlay.
Nottingham Forest, appearing in England's top flight for the first time in twenty-three years, are reportedly on the verge of signing Morgan Gibbs-White in a deal worth £44.5 million including add-ons, huge money for a team whose aim is to stay in the division.
Arsenal have been the biggest spenders in the league over the last two summers without Champions League football. This is not bad investment. The Premier League's revenue and footballing needs make it a necessity.
Manchester United spending a lot of money is not an issue. The sheer scale of their commercial revenue makes their footballing expenditure self-sufficient. However, how they have spent their money over the last decade has debilitated the football club on the pitch.
The huge 'name' signings of Angel Di Maria, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Paul Pogba, and Cristiano Ronaldo sums up the lack of footballing thought in what little exists of their recruitment process. Manchester City have famously steered away from 'revenue signings', and Liverpool have turned players much of their fanbase hadn't heard of into club legends.
While Casemiro can be considered a 'name', part of that famous Real Madrid side that locked down the Champions League for three straight seasons, it's almost as if Manchester United need 'names' now.
Gary Neville has touched on a lack of leadership at the football club. Cristiano Ronaldo's petulant attempt to leave this summer has not helped that. Bringing in another developing player just because he suits the profile of manager Erik Ten Hag's philosophy is not going to aid Manchester United in their lack of intangibles. You would not bring a talented, young pool swimmer into open water and ask them to swim a mile in a storm.
If you excuse the lousy analogy, Casemiro is ready for the big games, and the mental battles and has done a hell of a lot of winning. He is also still very close to or at his best. That midfield anchor who already has all the right stuff can prove so crucial in a very dark time for the football club.
Casemiro has cemented himself as one of the top defensive midfielders in Europe. His physical presence, bite, and elite level of play make him ready for the Premier League. Furthermore, he fills the most gaping and impactful hole in Manchester United's team.
Scott McTominay has been a massive issue for Manchester United for a while. The last time the club signed a 'number 6' was Nemanja Matic, five years ago. A player who left the club this summer. While McTominay is not good enough, it is not his fault. The Scotsman's best position was never defensive midfield. He has only had to adapt to that position for a long time due to his excellent form during the first 18 months of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's reign and United's shambolic recruitment.
Casemiro is one of the most effective 'destroyers' in Europe. His ability to put out fires and stunt the progression of his opponents made him the anchor of the now legendary midfield trio he made up with Luka Modric and Toni Kroos. The time of engagement with opposition attackers is perfect. He is also, despite popular belief, brilliant with the ball at his feet - it is hard to look like an elite technician when playing next to the likes of Modric and Kroos.
The Brazilian comes with world-class tackling, blocking and defensive solidity. Despite McTominay's confidence with the ball at his feet, he is also better at that. Nobody exaggerates if they say that Casemiro is better at everything.
Ten Hag's desire to play a possession-based game saw them get torn apart and bullied by a physical Brentford side. The lack of solidity in midfield is something that isolates United's centre-backs. The recent spike in ball-playing defender recruitment requires them to be protected. There is no denying that United have a great selection of progressive centre-backs. However, a centre-back's responsibility means there needs to be a team around them to help their ability to get on the ball. Casemiro does this with how proactive, alert and impressive he is in his defensive third. His addition would make United that little bit harder to play through. A weakness that many a team has exposed over the last year.
By no means does this fix everything. Fred and Casemiro have an excellent record together in the heart of Brazil's midfield. Still, the Premier League is different, and if those two are not to work, they would need an intelligent, deep-lying ball progressor to play alongside Casemiro.
Toni Kroos is one of the greatest ever to do this and it would take a top signing even to come close to the levels the two reached at Real Madrid. Christian Eriksen has some skillset to provide that, but he is not ideal. Signing the ideal would provide the foundations for United's midfield to be a success. Especially in the Premier League.
Everywhere you look in the top six, there are systems/personnel designed to dominate midfield battles: Man City's inverted full backs, Liverpool's high press, Chelsea's wing overloads. Nevertheless, the most worrying issue with United is how supposedly inferior teams play through them so easily, and Casemiro helps significantly with that.
Casemiro being 30 years old is not as short-term of an issue as some may make out, but one does wonder the point of it if United are not going all out in the next two weeks to push themselves well into the fight for Europe this season. One season of a mediocre transition sees the Brazilian approaching 32 already.
However, from a footballing perspective, it dramatically improves their biggest weakness on the pitch. Nobody can deny that the potential of this Manchester United squad is high. However, the club's inability to identify and solve footballing issues through wise recruitment has caused them to hit a new low in the past week.
Many reports from the Netherlands today also suggested that United had an 80 million euro bid rejected by Ajax for Brazilian right-winger Antony. While a great addition, this is another example of Man United muddling their priorities.
Recruiting around complementing the supremely talented Jadon Sancho makes more sense. A direct, overlapping right back, a similar profile to PSG's Achraf Hakimi, is likely to bring more out of Sancho. Hakimi being Sancho's former teammate at Dortmund, the Moroccan is expected to be unavailable himself, but the best example of the profile of a player that would suit Sancho's strengths. A better alternative to outlaying over £70 million on an attacker with Rashford, Sancho and Martial all still at the club and Bruno Fernandes' best position being behind the striker.
It seems as if that new low has caused the club to react. Many cynics will think that these are blind signings to appease the fans with another organised protest against the ownership looming on Monday night. While that is possible, there was something very different about the Brentford result. There is nothing to indicate that United are better than anyone in this league. The 2-game sample we have of each team sees them sit at the bottom of the table, and rightfully.
No matter the commercial revenues and the Glazers' ability to hide, a season in the bottom half of the table is a disaster for their image and reputation.
Casemiro dramatically improves this area of the pitch and can help stabilise a dressing room lacking in confidence and leadership.
Manchester United's problems will never entirely go away without a club sale - rumours are swirling that process is on the horizon. However, no matter how embarrassing the result against Brentford was, it could prove to be a watershed moment in the club's history.