Casemiro sends message to his Man Utd replacement and reveals Old Trafford idol

Casemiro has provided an insight into what his replacement must bring to Manchester United’s midfield when he departs Old Trafford at the end of the season.

The 34-year-old midfielder announced in January that this year would be his last with the Red Devils and he will no doubt be doing everything in his power to go out on a high this summer.

Since joining from Real Madrid in a deal worth around £70million back in 2022, Casemiro has made a total of 152 appearances in all competitions for United while chipping in with 22 goals and 15 assists.

In that time, the veteran Brazil international has lifted the FA Cup and the Carabao Cup, which both came under Erik ten Hag, but a third-place finish in his debut season remains his highest in the Premier League.

United are on course to equal that this term if they continue in the same vein after Michael Carrick’s phenomenal start to life as interim head coach since Ruben Amorim’s dismissal.

Casemiro has been a near ever-present under Carrick, starting all seven matches of the manager’s extraordinary unbeaten run in the Premier League.

According to recent reports emanating out of Spain, Casemiro has encouraged United to pursue a summer transfer move for Newcastle and Brazil midfielder Bruno Guimaraes as his long-term successor.

Now, in a wide-ranging interview with DAZN, the five-time Champions League winner has outlined the non-negotiables that his replacement must look to achieve if they are to fill his shoes in United’s engine room.

‘The midfield is where everything happens, where every moment of the game unfolds,’ Casemiro explained.

‘The midfielder has to be highly focused on every action, both his own and that of his team-mates.’

Casemiro insists the role of a central midfielder should not necessarily change when the team is ahead in a game.

‘I try to figure out how to handle matches when we’re winning, to keep playing seriously, to keep trying to win,’ the ex-Madrid star added.

‘The first thing is what the coach asks, because he’s the one in charge. You try to adapt to his ideas and his style of play. From there, it’s about feeling the game and concentration:

‘The focus on each decision made on the field and being very concentrated on what you’re going to do.’

Later on in the interview, Casemiro cast his mind back and revealed which footballers he most admired as a youngster, with two names standing out above the rest.

‘Zinedine Zidane, in particular. Of course, Zidane is number one and, for me, he is the one I always looked at closely,’ he explained.

‘But I also watched a lot of football in the period when United were winning it all, with Sir Alex Ferguson.

‘So a player I liked a lot was Paul Scholes, who played a bit in my position. When he played, I watched him very closely.

‘When you are a kid, everyone on TV becomes someone you pay attention to. You are always watching a lot of football. I really enjoyed those players.’

Casemiro opted against triggering a one-year option on his contract with United – worth more than £300,000 a week – to explore opportunities elsewhere for next season.

There has been strong interest from Major League Soccer regarding a potential deal to land the vastly experienced Brazilian, with Inter Miami believed to be his preferred destination.

A long list of high-profile names have been linked as possible replacements for Casemiro in Manchester, including Elliot Anderson, Adam Wharton, Sandro Tonali, Carlos Baleba, Tyler Adams and, as mentioned, Guimaraes.

It’s understood the Red Devils have freed up funds in the region of £170million to reinforce their midfield options ahead of the summer transfer window.

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