Manchester United will be without star midfielder Casemiro when they face Arsenal in their mouthwatering Premier League showdown at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The former Real Madrid midfielder was booked during Wednesday night's 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park. He was cautioned with just ten minutes of normal time left on the clock for a crunching tackle on former Reds winger Wilfried Zaha.
It was his fifth yellow card of the season, meaning he must serve a one-match suspension for United's trip to the current table-toppers. Such is Casemiro's importance, his suspension could not have arrived at a worse time for the Reds.
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He is the fourth United player to be cautioned on five occasions so far this season, following Diogo Dalot's, Scott McTominay's and Bruno Fernandes' bans earlier in the campaign. Fellow United duo Lisandro Martinez and Fred are currently on four bookings.
However, neither Martinez or Fred, nor any other player in Erik ten Hag's squad, will be forced to serve a one-match ban once they collect their fifth booking of the campaign, as the cut-off point for five yellow cards resulting in a suspension has now passed. Premier League rules state that players who receive five yellow cards within their team's first 19 league fixtures are suspended for one match.
Although nobody else in Ten Hag's squad is in danger of being slapped with a one-match ban, United's players will still have to watch themselves as the season progresses, as picking up ten yellow cards inside the opening 32 games of the league campaign will result in a two-match ban. The 32nd round of Premier League fixtures is scheduled for the weekend of April 22.
Dalot, McTominay, Casemiro and Fernandes are the closest members of United's squad to reaching ten yellow cards, all currently sitting on five each. Yellow cards do not carry across to either the Carabao Cup or FA Cup, meaning United's players do not risk adding to their tallies in domestic cup matches.
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