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When Manchester United’s new hierarchy sat together after Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s purchase of a minority stake, one of the first and easiest decisions was over recruitment. The late August purchase of a 30-year-old like Casemiro was cited as the type of deal they’d never do again, and the way that was discussed is known to have aggravated the Brazilian. There was much more to the stance, however, than just Casemiro's profile or performances. United were also seeking to follow “best practice”. They were going to copy the transfer philosophies of the two leading clubs in the game right now – Manchester City and Real Madrid.
