To say that Erik ten Hag has had to overcome a series of challenges during his first season in charge at Manchester United would be something of an understatement.
The Dutchman, who watched his side battle back from 1-0 down to beat Fulham 3-1 and progress to the FA Cup semi-finals on Sunday, has had to navigate his team through a series of obstacles. From losing his first two games at the helm to the whole Cristiano Ronaldo saga that developed just before the World Cup, Ten Hag has not had too many instances where things have been simple and straightforward.
Through all of those adversities, however, he has guided United to their first trophy in six years, the semi-finals of the FA Cup, the quarter-finals of the Europa League and a famous European victory over Barcelona. The positives have significantly outweighed the negatives, and when you reflect on all of the challenges that he has faced in a relatively short space of time, it makes the job he has done so far all the more admirable.
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And even with just over two months of the season to go, those problems are still showing no signs of stopping. Casemiro's second red card in his last three Premier League matches against Southampton just over a week ago was another blow for Ten Hag to have to deal with.
The Brazilian, who joined the Reds from Real Madrid last August, has, in the eyes of almost everyone, been United's best player this season, correcting their midfield woes of recent seasons and breathing a new lease of life into a squad that was short on winners and a winning mentality. He has been the glue that has held the Reds together, offering a defensive presence in the engine room that had been lacking for several years.
When he has not played, however, neither have United. Jamie Carragher expertly summed up his importance in the aftermath of the 7-0 defeat to Liverpool earlier this month, suggesting that when either Casemiro hasn't played or hasn't played well, nor have United.
It was proven once again against Fulham at the weekend. Although United found a way to get the job done and win the game, their performance was uninspiring, to say the least. They lacked control and failed to take the game to the Cottagers in a way they should have done playing at home as the superior team.
However, that has not just been the case whenever Casemiro has been missing this season. United have also failed to exert control and dictate games in the same way ever since they lost Christian Eriksen to a serious ankle injury in January. The Dane was forced off during the 3-1 win over Reading in the FA Cup fourth round after being on the receiving end of a crunching challenge from Andy Carroll.
Eriksen, who is not expected to return until late April at the earliest, also joined United last summer and was tasked, along with Casemiro, with trying to solve the club's midfield problems. Although he arrived at Old Trafford as a seasoned attacking-midfielder, playing in the No.10 role, Ten Hag quickly transformed him into a deep-lying playmaker, operating in the No.8 berth.
Working in tandem with Casemiro, the Dane quickly established a strong and reliable partnership with the former Madrid man, giving United a blend of defensive nous and creativity in midfield. They immediately centred themselves at the very heart of the Reds' improvements under Ten Hag and it was a partnership that was blossoming until Eriksen was sentenced to the treatment room almost two months ago.
United, to a degree, have coped without Eriksen when Casemiro has been available, but without him as well they have struggled. During the latter's previous red card suspension period last month, United faced Leeds twice and Leicester City. Even though they took seven points from those three games, they were, for the most part, poor and uninspiring, with a lack of control being the obvious weakness.
They were unorganised and lacked cohesion in those fixtures and it was a similar tale against Fulham at the weekend. Although Scott McTominay, Marcel Sabitzer and Fred bring their own qualities to the table, they do not offer the same level of quality that Eriksen and Casemiro provide, both individually and as a collective.
The sooner United are able to recover the pair of them and reunite them in the centre of midfield, the better. Without them, they lack everything that Ten Hag wants.
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