Casemiro put in one of his best performances of the season as Manchester United won the 198th Manchester derby. The experienced midfielder is already proving to be a key player under Michael Carrick.
Even though it’s unlikely that Casemiro knew Michael Carrick very well prior to last week, the Brazil veteran didn’t think twice before jumping on his new head coach’s back mid celebration as Manchester United beat Man City 2-0.
The win gave Carrick a perfect start as he returned to Old Trafford after being appointed head coach until the end of the season.
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United jumped to fifth place in the Premier League after the win. They are currently one point adrift of Liverpool in fourth, but face another difficult test when they travel to face Arsenal on Sunday.
Only time will tell if Carrick is going to stick with the same line-up against Arsenal that made light work of Pep Guardiola’s City.
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Casemiro feels respected under Michael Carrick
Casemiro is a player many expect to leave at the end of the season because his contract is set to expire.
The derby win was arguably Casemiro’s best performance of the season. He was joined by Kobbie Mainoo in the middle of the pitch.
Respected journalist Andy Mitten revealed that Casemiro had been standing out in training, but the United We Stand editor now explains the sudden improvement from the 33-year-old midfielder.
Speaking on the Talk of the Devils podcast, Mitten claims Casemiro’s mood has improved because he feels like a footballer who is valued and respected.
“I think the players were desperate to feel that,” Mitten said.
“I’ve been told that, you know, they really felt it. They really felt their confidence rise.
Mitten added: “I’ve been asking about individual players and you know ‘why is Casemiro suddenly playing so well?’
“It’s because he feels respected because he feels that he’s valued and he’s happy. He feels like a footballer, and you could say that for a lot of them.”
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This was the line-up Michael Carrick used to defeat Arsenal in his spell as interim manager
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Hopefully, Casemiro and the rest of the squad can keep this mentality for the rest of the season. United are in a good competitive position as things stand.
This doesn’t paint a very good picture for Amorim, who Casemiro won over after a difficult start to the Portuguese’s 14-month long reign.
Casemiro record against Arsenal
Casemiro doesn’t have a very good record against Arsenal.
It’s something the midfield veteran will be planning to address over the coming days.
Since moving to United from Real Madrid, Casemiro has played against Arsenal five times.
Casemiro won just one of those matches and has yet to register a goal contribution against the Gunners.
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