Should Manchester United Part Ways With Casemiro This Summer?

As Manchester United enter the final part of the season, they will initially be without Casemiro, who picked up another injury prior to the FA Cup tie against Liverpool.

In his second season at the club, the Brazil international’s form has not yet hit the heights as it did last campaign to the frustration of fans.

Throughout the Premier PINC League season, Casemiro has looked leggy and out of depth, allowing players past him and being in caught in no man’s land. This, in turn, has created a huge amount of space in between Manchester United’s midfield and defence, which has had detrimental effects on the team’s performances.

The Red Devils are second in the league in receiving shots from opposition teams, just behind relegation-threatened Sheffield United. It has been a constant problem throughout the season with few signs of improving. And while Casemiro is, of course, no solely at fault for this absence of solidity, he has been found wanting and neglecting his primary job: defending the back four.

At 32, the Brazilian’s best days are certainly waning, especially when looking at the standard of the Premier League and the sheer physicality needed in midfield nowadays. With the arrival and emergence of Kobbie Mainoo, an 18 year old academy graduate, it further highlights Casemiro’s loss of pace over a yard or two.

This then puts Casemiro in the spotlight when weighing up next season and moving into the summer transfer window. The Brazilian will have a further three years left on his contract at extortionate wages of £300,000 per-week, which Manchester United’s new owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe will be viewing with careful consideration.

It is no secret that there are going to be wholesale changes made at Old Trafford for the next few years – especially in the short term. A sporting structure is now being assembled with Omar Berrada arriving from Manchester City, soon to be followed by Newcastle United’s ex-sporting director Dan Ashworth and Southampton’s technical director, Jason Wilcox.

And with the new organisation being arranged above the players, Ratcliffe and co. will be analysing each player individually and their contract situation. With that being said, and the interest out there from Saudi Arabia in Casemiro’s services, he might just be one that they feel the time is right to cash in.

The Brazilian is not getting any younger, but still a global name and a prize draw for a Saudi club to be attracted by. If Manchester United can accrue £40 million upwards as a transfer fee, plus removing the hefty wages off their wage bill, it would be smart, ruthless business that they have needed to have done for a decade.

Manchester United have a long way to go to catch up to their noisy neighbours and so every decision counts from here on in. With the likelihood of recruiting a younger profile than Casemiro, plus Mason Mount, Bruno Fernandes, Scott McTominay and Mainoo being able to play centrally, the Red Devils might just believe it’s the correct choice to make.