Manchester United fans’ reaction to Casemiro’s performance against Manchester City spoke volumes after the Red Devils suffered a defeat in the Community Shield on Saturday.
Erik ten Hag’s men reached Saturday’s Community Shield match after Manchester United defeated Manchester City 2-1 in the FA Cup final at Wembley in May.
United appeared close to capturing the Community Shield after Alejandro Garnacho came off the bench and fired the Red Devils into the lead in the 82nd minute.
However, Pep Guardiola’s men rallied back and Bernardo Silva produced an all-important equaliser in the 89th minute of the Community Shield clash.
The Community Shield match went straight to penalties after the full-time whistle, with Bernardo Silva seeing his spot-kick effort denied by Andre Onana.
Alejandro Garnacho and Diogo Dalot went on to score their penalties for United, while Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland converted for City.
However, Jadon Sancho saw his penalty denied before Casemiro, Scott McTominay and Lisandro Martinez all scored for United in the shootout.
Jonny Evans blazed United’s seventh penalty over the bar before Manuel Akanji clinched the win for City by beating Andre Onana from the spot-kick.
Casemiro’s starring role vs Man City
Casemiro faced heavy criticism at Old Trafford last season after his underwhelming performances for Manchester United.
The 32-year-old Brazilian midfielder was widely hailed for his debut season in England after United signed him from Real Madrid in 2022 in a deal worth £70m.
However, Casemiro’s influence waned in the 2023-24 campaign and the former Real Madrid star also had to contend with injuries during last season.
Erik ten Hag even turned to the Brazil international as a makeshift centre-back last season amid an injury crisis in his first-team squad.
Casemiro took his place in the starting XI for the Community Shield clash alongside Kobbie Mainoo and showed shades of his former Madrid form in the match.
The Brazil midfielder was solid over the course of 90 minutes and played a key role in offering much-needed protection to the United defence in the first half against Manchester City.
Casemiro was also strong going forward with United and linked up superbly well with Amad Diallo and Bruno Fernandes during a brilliant first-half chance at Wembley.
Man Utd fans react to Casemiro vs Man City
United fans on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, were more than happy with what they saw from Casemiro in the Community Shield defeat.
The Red Devils are believed to be keen on signing a new midfielder this summer, with Casemiro’s long-term future at Old Trafford remaining in doubt.
However, United fans were convinced that the club might not need another defensive midfield option if Casemiro’s performance against City was not a one-off.
“If this is the Casemiro we’re getting for the season, I can vibe with it,” one fan said.
Another commented: “Casemiro has been totally brilliant today, BTW, credit where it’s due.”
A third added: “If Casemiro can play like this for a season, then we may not need another defensive midfielder.”
Someone else wrote: “That performance was more like the Casemiro we know and love from the first season!”
“Casemiro still does things no-one else at United can do,” a fifth X user posted.
While a sixth fan said: “Casemiro, don’t sell me dreams. ‘Cause this performance is insane!”
“Casemiro is my man of the match, I hope he can keep up that performance for the rest of the season,” somebody else tweeted.
An eighth boldly claimed: “Casemiro today has been reminiscent of Real Madrid’s Casemiro.”
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