In a recent report, BBC revealed that Manchester United midfielder Casemiro asked Erik ten Hag not to play him in the FA Cup final. It is believed that the Brazilian midfield enforcer’s name was on Man United’s official teamsheet but the player told ten Hag of his desire to not participate in the contest amid concerns over a tight hamstring.
As it turned out, the Red Devils didn’t need to rely on Casemiro’s services as they went on to beat their rivals, Manchester City by a 2-1 scoreline at Wembley Stadium in the final last weekend. A goal each from Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo were enough to give Man United the win on the day.
Casemiro was pictured with the famous FA Cup trophy following the final. He went on to make a brief appearance at the Mancunian club’s post-season party before going off for his holidays.
Casemiro has struggled to impress for Man United this season which has seen him being left out of Brazil’s squad for the upcoming Copa America later this summer.
The 32-year-old deserves some credit for putting in a run of impressive displays at the heart of ten Hag’s midfield during this campaign. Casemiro has been involved in 32 matches for Man United this season, finding the back of the net five times and securing three assists in all competitions.
The Brazilian talent has given a good account of himself in the middle of the park by averaging 3.3 tackles, 0.7 interceptions, 2.6 clearances, 1.6 shots and 0.6 key passes per 90 minutes in the Premier League. He has even been accurate when distributing possession from midfield after making 82.6% of his attempted passes in the top tier of English football (stats via whoscored).
Casemiro is under contract at Old Trafford until the summer of 2026. However, it remains to be seen whether he is still at the Mancunian club when the new Premier League campaign kicks off in August.
