Rio Ferdinand believes Casemiro displayed his innate football intelligence and proved his own theory right with his performance in Manchester United ’s win over Everton on Sunday.
After being left on the bench for the 6-3 thrashing by Manchester City last weekend, Casemiro was given his first Premier League start by Erik ten Hag at Goodison Park. United left Merseyside with three points in a 2-1 victory which moved them up to fifth place in the Premier League table and Casemiro was one of the stand-out performers for the away side.
Things did not start well for the Brazilian midfielder, who was dispossessed by Amadou Onana in the build-up to Alex Iwobi’s early strike. But his experience shone through as the match progressed and, as well as winning back possession on several occasions, he also provided the telling assist for Cristiano Ronaldo ’s winner.
Ferdinand has been extremely vocal in his support of Casemiro since he joined the club in a deal worth up to £60million from Real Madrid in the summer. And after slamming Ten Hag’s decision to leave him on the bench for the Manchester derby, he explained the difference the 30-year-old makes to the side.
“Casemiro has the experience,” he said on BT Sport. “He’s won multiple Champions Leagues, he understands football. Even though it’s a different stadium, a different environment, he will get used to it and adapt quickly because of his intelligence.
“You don’t play at that level [at Real Madrid] without having a level of intelligence. Yes he started poorly – he gave the ball away for the goal – but as the manager said he grew into the game. If you had a highlights reel on him today with the ball, you’d say he shouldn’t be playing maybe.”
HAVE YOUR SAY! Should Casemiro be an automatic starter for Manchester United? Comment below.
Although Casemiro’s most eye-catching contribution came when he won the ball and sent Ronaldo away with an incisive through-ball, and he also nearly scored a first-half header, Ferdinand believes his real qualities lie out of possession.
He said: “Without the ball, the positions that he took up, the way he regained possession, [the way he] didn’t allow [opposition] players to play the ball forward into dangerous areas, that is what you need in your team if you are going to have any stability. I’m not concerned with him on the ball, he will give it to the players who can create.”
He added: “That’s been his game his whole career. He is there to plug gaps, plug spaces. For me, as a centre-back, you need someone in front of you who knows how to marshal that space in front, to not give away opportunities easily.
“He’s the only midfield player in the Man United squad that knows how to defend instinctively and it’s part of his make-up, the best part of his game.”
