Manchester United finished just eighth in the Premier League last season for their worst finish in the Premier League era, but they were able to qualify for the Europa League by virtue of a win over rivals Manchester City in the FA Cup Final.
That win was enough for incoming ownership group INEOS to stick with manager Erik ten Hag despite rampant criticism from the media and an inability to relate to many of his players.
Manchester United had serious problems in their squad they needed to address, and, once again, they spent a lot of money on the transfer market in an effort to address them, signing Noussair Mazraoui, Matthijs de Ligt, Leny Yoro, Manuel Ugarte, and Joshua Zirkzee.
Already, though, there are questions if Manchester United spent on the right players and for the right amounts, because, for example, Zirkzee does not have a strong goal-scoring track record but was a 40 million euro-plus investment.
In the aftermath of an embarrassing 3-0 loss to rivals Liverpool, much of the scrutiny has been placed on one Manchester United player. A player whom many thought for sure was going to leave Old Trafford after a woeful 2023/24 season that was a sharp departure from previous seasons.
That man is defensive midfielder Casemiro. Sold by Real Madrid after their 2021/22 Champions League triumph over Liverpool, Casemiro followed in Raphael Varane’s footsteps as another Real Madrid great whom the club got rid of at the exact right time.
Unfortunately, Manchester United were on the receiving end, and while they got one great season out of Casemiro to return to the Champions League in 2022/23, the Brazilian captain fell off a cliff in 2023/24.
Expected to leave to Saudi Arabia, Casemiro shockingly stayed through the transfer window and was promptly exposed against elite competition in Liverpool, delivering a disasterclass that included directly playing a role in the first two goals the Red Devils allowed to the Kopites.
But to single out Casemiro as the scapegoat for the loss is yet another disgustingly convenient gesture by a segment of Manchester United fans who seem to function moreso as puppets to the crest rather than individuals who actually want to see their club do well.
Yes, Casemiro was atrocious, but what else is new? He was just as bad for much of the 2023/24 season, especially towards the end. But nobody said he had to stay at Manchester United and nobody told ten Hag or the club that they had to keep starting him.
It was Man United’s decision to not be more aggressive in selling the declining 32-year-old midfielder, and it was their decision to start him in a big match against a top team in Liverpool, knowing full well he was highly liable to be exposed by a dynamic Champions League-caliber side.
Manchester United can sit their and point the finger at a beloved, tragically declining veteran midfielder, or they can look at all the other problems. It’s not like the other midfielders or defenders were that great against Liverpool, and the attack was just as abysmal and lethargic with few real chances created.
Under ten Hag, Man United have consistently been out of ideas and outclassed by great teams in the Premier League, regardless of Casemiro’s starting status. And Casemiro won’t be starting for long once top new signing Manuel Ugarte kicks into high gear – and he was arguably the best signing of the bunch this summer.
The thing is, Ugarte starting for Casemiro doesn’t solve all the other problems. It doesn’t solve Andre Onana’s up-and-down nature, the lack of goals, Marcus Rashford’s pedestrian output, the inconsistency of the wingers, and the overall disjointed nature of a squad lacking structure or impetus under a manager who still hasn’t really accomplished anything substantial at football’s elite level but sure loves to yammer nonsense about his opponents or invoke Harry freaking Potter.
