The World Cup is dominating the football landscape at the moment but what’s happening in North America is reflecting well on Man Utd boss Michael Carrick.
Michael Carrick got the best out of Casemiro at Manchester United
It was a sight familiar to Manchester United fans, Casemiro rising high in the six-yard box and heading in a crucial goal for his team. But what had happened up until that moment also had echoes of the Brazilian at Old Trafford, just that these were much less happy memories.
Watching Casemiro at the World Cup has mostly brought back memories of watching him in Erik ten Hag’s ill-fated second season, when a desire to become more expansive left him horribly exposed.
It has been a difficult tournament for the 34-year-old, despite his vital goal against Japan in the round of 32. Against Morocco and Japan, he found himself caught out by opponents who play fast and energetic football through midfield, which isn’t a regular feature of the international game.
Casemiro was booked in both matches and looked vulnerable for Brazil in both. He was pressed aggressively by both sides, had little support around him and struggled to keep up. Against Morocco, he was taken off at half-time, and it was a surprise that the same fate didn’t befall him against Japan.
Having been shown a yellow card early on against Japan, he was then powerless to do anything when goalscorer Kaishu Sano dribbled past him before drilling a shot into the bottom corner.
Roy Keane had certainly seen enough. During the first-half hydration break, he said of Casemiro: “He’s just getting bypassed every time the Japanese players get the ball. He’s given the ball away three or four times, not under pressure. He’s run into two of his own players. He just seems all out of sorts.”
He expanded on that point at half-time, criticising Casemiro and the Brazil midfield in general. He said: “Yeah, it’s been a huge worry throughout the competition. I saw them in the first game against Morocco, and it cost them.
“They made a mistake earlier in the game with their midfielders getting out of position. Casemiro is already on a yellow card, and it certainly affects the decision-making in terms of closing the goal scorer down.
“Obviously, they give the ball away cheaply, but there’s still a long way to go. This is the bit that frustrates me, you see Casemiro here, and his first movement is to come out.
“He has to be backtracking and protecting the goal. He’s got to be slowing the player down because he’s an experienced player.
“It’s no good having all that experience if you’re not going to use it. Credit to the attacking midfielder Sano, very, very good [finish]. Casemiro has almost guided him to go past him.
“His first movement has got to be backtracking to slow him up and protect the middle of the goal. Well deserved, very good strike, but from Brazil’s midfield point of view, nowhere near good enough. I’ll be surprised if he comes out for the second half.”
Casemiro did come out for the second half, and Carlo Ancelotti had the last laugh, but it’s been noticeable that, having had a brilliant second half of the season at Old Trafford, Casemiro is now struggling at the World Cup.
He is playing in an almost identical system to Michael Carrick’s 4-2-3-1, but while he was protected at United, he is being exposed for Brazil. For that, Carrick deserves credit.
The 44-year-old clearly doesn’t have the CV of Ancelotti, but he set up his United side to hide Casemiro’s weakness and play to his strengths. The player deserves credit for the way he recovered from those dark days in his career in Manchester, but this is evidence that those issues haven’t gone away. They were just well hidden.
Kobbie Mainoo proved to be his perfect partner, bringing energy and athleticism next to him, while United had bodies around Casemiro when the opposition attacked. He was so rarely exposed in a way he was in 2023/24 and the early part of the following season.
United’s 3-2 win against Liverpool was one example when the opposition did find space around the midfield, although it didn’t prove to be costly. The defeat to Leeds in April featured Manuel Ugarte alongside Casemiro and the midfield didn’t function as well as it had been doing.
Casemiro, who officially leaves United today, showed strength of character during his time at the club. He did it for Brazil on Monday and could yet have a key role at the tournament, but it’s been a struggle at times so far, and those games have only shown what Carrick got just right in his 17 games in charge in the second half of last season.
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2026-06-30 10:30:00
