Ian Wright has revealed his surprise at the performance of Casemiro in Manchester United's defeat by Aston Villa.
The Red Devils were comfortably beaten at Villa Park, with the hosts scoring twice within the first 12 minutes to take a lead United never recovered from. The defeat is a blow to their hopes of securing a place in the top four, with Brighton and Chelsea closing in.
Embodying United's poor display was Casemiro, who put in a surprisingly poor performance in midfield. The Brazilian has been one of United's most solid players since his arrival from Real Madrid in the summer, making 16 appearances in all competitions.
But he put in the worst performance of his United career so far on Sunday in Birmingham. He won just one tackle and lost seven defensive duels as he also committed four fouls at Villa Park.
Alongside Christian Eriksen, Casemiro was unable to get a grip of midfield, allowing Villa to overrun United. And Arsenal legend Wright also criticised the Brazilian for his role in Villa's opening goal, scored by Leon Bailey.
"Ollie Watkins played very well, he ran himself into the ground today. Once it got to Leon Bailey on his left foot, it was going to be a problem. [Watkins] dragged Lindelof out of his position," Wright told Premier League Productions.
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"I was thinking Casemiro has got to drop in there. It just looks too big, there was a massive space. You can see once the ball went into Leon Bailey on his strong foot, it could have been avoided. They needed to have their wits about them there. I’m very surprised Casemiro didn’t see that."
United boss Erik ten Hag also slammed his side for their performance against Unai Emery's team. The Dutchman admitted the Red Devils had not been good enough to deserve any of the points.
"We lose the game at the start of the first half and second half, that is unacceptable. They looked fresher, more ready. The result is clear, it never lies. In football, you always get your own earnings. Today we were not good enough," he told BBC Sport.
"After a long time this has happened, I said it was up to us. We didn't keep the ball, we didn't get the right organisation, didn't follow the rules and lost battles. Our players have experience.
You have to read the game, get the right organisation and not concede two goals. That was totally unnecessary. We need to be sharper. You have to be compact and stand on the ball. Everyone has to win their own battles, we didn't, and that is disappointing.
"We didn't get the right organisation. We created chances and good chances at 2-1. But you are really disappointed to concede at the start of the second half."
Casemiro will hope to put his poor performance behind him when United host Villa in the Carabao Cup on Thursday. If he is rested for that game, his next chance to get back on track will come next Sunday when the Red Devils travel to Fulham.
