A lot of us were worried about the wrong transfer on deadline day in 2022.
Manchester United wrapped up the acquisition of Casemiro and Antony after a pair of worrying results in the early days under Erik ten Hag, spending nearly £150 million on the Brazilians to bolster the squad.
Antony was a young player on the rise at the time, scoring 12 goals and providing 10 assists in an Eredivisie-winning campaign for Ajax and joining the Brazilian national team ahead of its 2022 World Cup campaign. His £86m
fee looks ridiculous in hindsight, but was shrugged off as the price you pay for a young star at the time.
The £60m paid for Casemiro was a bit more of a head scratcher. There was no doubt he was one of the best midfielders in his time at Real Madrid, anchoring a star-studded side that won five UEFA Champions League titles in eight years. He was an upgrade on the player he replaced, Nemanja Matic, but there was understandable wariness in signing a player a similar age to Matic when he was signed in 2017, and subsequently struggled to produce at a consistent level as his legs added more and more miles.
Three and a half years later, there’s no question that Casemiro has been the success story of the two signings, but that doesn’t mean that the wariness was unfounded. Much was asked of Casemiro, and Casemiro has delivered much in return, but with his departure in the Summer confirmed at the end of an expensive contract, the question of who to sign as a replacement is probably the biggest one for the club apart from who will be the manager.
There may even be a question of whether Casemiro should still stick around. His wages are a bit lower than the £350k/week he was reportedly making with European football, but he is still the highest earner along with Bruno Fernandes. It’s understandable as well. When Casemiro is healthy, he is one of the first names on the team sheet. He is a dominant defensive presence, he is still a skilled passer and plays at a high level with a lot of ground to cover. This season in particular, he has been undroppable, and with a return to the three-man midfield, he has a bit more help in the middle.
What isn’t in question is his commitment to winning, but there is also no question that he has been made to feel unwanted since the arrival of new owner, Jim Ratcliffe, who has taken charge of footballing decisions after acquiring a minority stake in the club. The owner mentioned Casemiro among several failed signings, referring to the hefty price of doing business for players like Jadon Sancho and Antony, even as it was clear that Casemiro was still a big part of the team.
There is no straightforward answer to whether Casemiro was a success. He was a good, at times great, footballer for the Reds and won two trophies. In that time, the club finished 3rd, 8th, 15th, and is currently in 4th in the Premier League under the fourth manager to take charge of the squad in that time.
It’s hard to measure success for a single player at a club that has experienced as much turbulence as Manchester United has in the past four years. There’s no real rubric for Casemiro, except that he did tick several boxes at a vital position that will be incredibly difficult to duplicate in the current market. The next midfielder may not shatter the club’s wage structure, but he certainly won’t have the same level of experience at the highest level as Casemiro did. He’ll have to make that for himself in a red shirt.
