How Casemiro's red card makes it difficult for Man Utd
In the 27th round of the Premier League on March 12, Casemiro buried his face in his shirt and seemed to want to burst into tears. "Desperately watching from the touchline, coach Erik ten Hag must have felt the same way," commented British newspaper Sportmail.
His best midfielder blundered into the Old Trafford tunnel for the second time in five weeks, after receiving a direct red card for a slightly overpowered tackle on Carlos Alcaraz. Due to Man Utd's decision not to appeal, Casemiro will receive his third suspension of his first season at Old Trafford, but this time it will be four games, bringing his total absence due to suspension this season. up 8.
The new penalty will cause Man Utd to lose Casemiro in the matches against Fulham in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup on March 19, and the matches against Newcastle 2/4, Brentford 5/4 and Everton 8/4 in the Premier League.
Casemiro received his first penalty in a 1-1 draw at Crystal Palace on January 18. Bruno Fernandes' negligence caused the Brazilian midfielder to make a tactical foul on Wilfried Zaha and receive a yellow card from referee Robert Jones, bringing the total number of cards from the beginning of the 2022-2023 Premier League season to five. Casemiro was therefore suspended for the next game against Arsenal. The spirit of the "Reds" seemed to be drained when Michael Olise scored a late equalizer for Crystal Palace, and Man Utd lost 2-3 at the Emirates four days later.
When rematching Crystal Palace at Old Trafford, the referee determined that Casemiro had strangled Will Hughes and also showed a direct red card after consulting VAR. Thanks to the high performance of rookie Marcel Sabitzer, Man Utd did not have to pay the price of this three-match suspension of Casemiro. They won and drew Leeds, respectively, and then crushed Leicester 3-0 at home.
But the next four matches without Casemiro are still a big blow to Ten Hag. The 31-year-old midfielder belongs to the pillar group that the Dutch coach has put his full trust in in recent times, alongside Lisandro Martinez, Bruno Fernandes and owner Marcus Rashford.
According to British newspaper Sportmail, of these five pillars, Casemiro shows the most influence with his ability to read the game, eliminate danger, launch attacks from deep midfield and even go forward and score goals. such as the winning goal in the 1-1 draw at Chelsea in October 2022 and the opening header in the League Cup final victory over Newcastle 2-0 at Wembley.
Casemiro's absence is even more damaging when Christian Eriksen and Donny van de Beek suffer long-term injuries, and Sabitzer misses the last two matches. Ten Hag hopes the Austrian midfielder's injury is not too serious, because he only has two options in the midfield, Fred and Scott McTominay. If Sabitzer does not return in time, the 53-year-old coach will have to use this duo in all four next matches. Many fans used to mock Fred and McTominay as symbols of Man Utd's mediocrity under predecessors Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick.
Another dilemma for Ten Hag is deciding whether to let Casemiro start in the second leg of the Europa League round of 16 against Betis in Spain. If he receives another yellow card in this match, the 31-year-old midfielder will be suspended for the quarter-finals of the first leg, in case Man Utd continue. Therefore, Ten Hag is likely to keep Casemiro, even though he cannot play in the domestic league, because Man Utd has the advantage of winning 4-1 in the first leg.
When the Premier League returned after a break to make way for the national teams to focus, the "Red Devils" faced a big challenge - being a guest of Newcastle. If they win against Nottingham Forest this weekend on March 17 - while Man Utd do not play because they are busy playing the FA Cup quarter-final against Fulham, Newcastle will narrow the gap to three points. At that time, they will enter the match against Man Utd with the desire to win three points to catch up with the opponent on the race to the top 4.
Dropping five points in the last two games - losing to Liverpool 0-7 and drawing Southampton 0-0 - causing Man Utd to be knocked out of the championship race and back in the top 4 battle.
"Now it seems foolish to think that the team under Ten Hag was once rated as a strong candidate for the Premier League title. But finishing in the top 4 was an obvious goal in the first season. his first at Old Trafford, and that must not be lost," commented Sportmail.
After a record defeat at Anfield, Man Utd relieved psychology and pressure with an easy win against Betis. But the next match against Southampton made it difficult for the "Red Devils" in the race for the top 4. Tottenham and Newcastle are aiming for Man Utd's third place, and Liverpool cannot be taken lightly despite having just lost 0-1 at the club. Bournemouth relegation race.
In the remaining two games without Casemiro, both at Old Trafford, Ten Hag will not underestimate Everton and certainly not Brentford - the club that crushed Man Utd 4-0 in the Dutch coach's second game.
"That's the scenario that Ten Hag could immediately think of when Casemiro's foot collided with Alcaraz's copper pipe on Sunday. Man Utd will manage to cope without Casemiro, but they have to do it once and for all. the hard way," commented Sportmail.
