The Red Devils have faced numerous injury and fitness issues, and Ten Hag has struggled to field his preferred starting lineup.

Casemiro sustained a hamstring injury during a recent defeat to Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup, while Lisandro Martinez underwent surgery to address a recurring metatarsal problem. Although Martinez was not expected to play again in 2023, Casemiro’s injury was initially believed to keep him out for only a few weeks.

However, speaking ahead of a Champions League match against FC Copenhagen, Ten Hag revealed that Casemiro is facing a race against time to return before the end of the calendar year.

“I have some time schedules, yeah, but it’s always difficult to predict that because they can get setbacks during the rehab period, so I’m always holding back a little bit on some issues,” Ten Hag said.

“I expect some [players] back but Casemiro and Martinez are really strong injuries and I don’t expect them back before Christmas. It’s several weeks.”

In better news for United, Marcus Rashford and Harry Maguire are both in line to start in Copenhagen. The forward missed Saturday’s win at Fulham having sustained a heavy knock in training, while the defender sustained a head injury early on at Craven Cottage but managed to complete the match.

“We did all the protocols during the game, after the game, so [Maguire] is ready to play,” Ten Hag continued. “Rashford? 100% [fit]. Harry was fine in the game, so no problems.

“He played a very good game. Rashy missed one game out, a small knock but he’s back.”

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The Denmark international joined United in a £72 million deal from Atalanta this summer, but a back injury has delayed his debut.

His moment came at the Emirates, when he came on after 67 minutes to replace Anthony Martial, and he gave a good account of himself, with his manager Erik ten Hag insisting he should have been awarded a penalty.

Shortly after his debut, Casemiro was spotted encouraging Hojlund by grabbing his shirt, which delighted United fans on social media.

Explaining the incident, the new United star revealed his teammate told him he was ‘pleasantly surprised’ with his efforts against the Gunners.

‘He just says something in Spanish: “vamos” or something like that,’ Hojlund told his national press, with the Denmark squad ahead of San Marino and Finland.

‘He was happy that I gave the team perhaps a slightly different dynamic than what you get from Martial.

‘He’s maybe a little more technically strong and looks down the gaps where I like to take the fights. After all, he hasn’t seen me play before, so he told me he was pleasantly surprised to see me play.’

On Sunday, Hojlund instantly engaged Arsenal defenders in physical combat, displaying early signs of his intense focus and strength.

The 20-year-old worked with Casemiro to set up Alejandro Garnacho for an oncoming counterattack, and he was also involved in the goal that was disallowed for offside.

Declan Rice and Gabriel Jesus scored in stoppage time to give United a 3-1 loss, although Gary Neville, a former United player, was inspired by Hojlund’s quick effect.

‘Manchester United haven’t had a striker that they can hit. That’s the problem,’ Neville told Sky Sports. ‘Cristiano Ronaldo wasn’t a classic targetman, [Anthony] Martial’s certainly not, [Marcus] Rashford’s not. At least they’ve got someone who looks he’ll mess people around and get his body in there. He’s aggressive, and he’s a runner.

‘The thing for him is he’s learning the game still. He’s only played a couple of seasons of top level football and we’re expected him to be Erling Haaland. That’s the problem.

‘Manchester United haven’t got anyone else with experience to back him up. We’ve been watching Martial for 9-10 years at Manchester United and he’s not what Erik ten Hag wants. This lad, lot of pressure on him, big price tag, but it was an encouraging start.’

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The most underappreciated player in the Premier League, according to Oleksandr Zinchenko, is Thomas Partey, an Arsenal colleague.

When Mikel Arteta’s team finished second to Manchester City in the Premier League standings the previous season, Partey was a crucial part of the midfield for Arsenal.

Partey is now playing at right-back, which is a stunning change for the beginning of the season after Declan Rice’s signing in the summer.

However, Zinchenko believes that Partey is the best defensive midfielder in the Premier League and prefers him above Rodri and Casemiro.

When asked who he thought was the most underappreciated player in the Premier League, Zinchenko responded, “Underrated… I envision Thomas Partey.

Asked if he feels Partey is better than Casemiro, Zinchenko replied: ‘Listen, I don’t want to say something bad, he’s absolutely a world-class player as well, Casemiro, five Champions Leagues. But for me, if you wanted me to choose one, it would be Partey.

‘I had the debate in my head, who is the best holding midfielder I have ever played with. It was between Fernandinho, Rodri and Partey.

‘It’s a tough one. I watched Fernandinho when he was at Shakhtar and he helped me so much. I love him like an older brother, but Thomas Partey… I don’t know.’

Asked by Rio Ferdinand if he believes Partey is better than Rodri, Zinchenko replied: ‘Rio, please come and see him in a training session. He has everything.

‘Rodri absolutely fits so well in City’s system, if you take him out it is a different City, for sure, no question. He is the main detail and that is the hardest position to play.’

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The 31-year-old midfielder, who has mastered the holding role that has grown to be so crucial for both domestic and international teams, may be regarded as a modern-day great in his own right.

Casemiro, a five-time Champions League champion from his spectacular time at Real Madrid, assisted in ending United’s six-year trophy drought last season when they won the Carabao Cup.

The Samba star has a large following, but he also admits to being a fan. He has three players in particular who he believes are head and shoulders above the others.

Asked by Placar magazine to run through his top three list, Casemiro said: “Lionel Messi left his mark. You can’t deny it. He was always a rival, with Barcelona and with Argentina, there was no way to escape it. But those who like football, like Messi. It was a pleasure playing against him. He is a guy who does not need comment. You just have to admire him.”

Casemiro added: “I had the pleasure of seeing Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar, who are the three greatest of my generation. I saw [the Brazilian] Ronaldo, I saw Zinedine Zidane but, without a doubt, these three are the best of my time. I never played against Cristiano, thank God! He gave me many titles and victories.”

Ronaldo and Casemiro worked together for many trophy-filled years at Santiago Bernabeu. After a brief reunion at Old Trafford, the Portuguese superstar sprinted out of the stadium as his contract expired in November 2022.

Ronaldo has joined Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia, Messi has joined Inter Miami in the MLS, Neymar is still under contract with Ligue 1 powerhouse Paris Saint-Germain, and Casemiro is counting down the minutes till the 2023–24 season in Manchester.

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Zinedine Zidane has revealed which of his former Real Madrid players astounded him above all others.

The former midfielder, who won 17 titles as a player and later served as manager twice for Los Blancos, is unquestionably one of the most well-liked legends in the club’s history.

During his tenure in the Santiago Bernabeu dugout, Zidane oversaw a number of legendary players, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Sergio Ramos, Toni Kroos, Gareth Bale, Vinicius Junior, and Casemiro.

However, he admitted in an interview with Telefoot that Luka Modric was not too far behind Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema as his first choice for a player who gets him out of his seat.

“If there is a player who lifts me out of my chair, that is Karim Benzema. Maybe also Luka Modric, players who, when they have the ball, you think they are going to lose it, but no, they always manage to get away with it,” Zidane said.

During Zidane’s first managerial tenure, Benzema primarily served as a supporter of Ronaldo, frequently selflessly setting up the Portuguese attacker. The Frenchman even finished the 2017–18 La Liga season with just five goals in 32 games.

By the time Zidane made his second appearance in Real Madrid in March 2019, Benzema had accepted the responsibility of being the team’s primary goal scorer. In 2022, a year after Zidane left once more, he eventually guided Los Blancos to their 14th Champions League championship.

The 51-year-old, who has been out of work for the past two years, acknowledged that he misses the routine of managing a football team.

“Do I miss the adrenaline of training at the highest level? Yes of course. When you’re away, you see it differently. I haven’t had it for two years, but it will come,” he added.

When asked if he would work in France – either for the national team or PSG – Zidane replied: “You can’t deny anything. I know what I want and what I don’t want. If I have decided to take a break, it is because I should have. I hope I can tell myself that soon I will be able to return to training.”

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Casemiro has hailed the quality of two Manchester United teammates whom he also shares the international stage with.

After joining United for £60 million from Real Madrid, Casemiro, 31, has had a significant influence at Old Trafford. In Erik Ten Hag’s first season in charge, Casemiro helped United come close to winning the Carabao Cup and qualifying for the Champions League.

The Brazilian scored in Saturday’s 1-0 victory against Bournemouth, but this season hasn’t been all roses for him. After receiving two consecutive red cards, he was suspended for a couple of Premier League games.

Last summer, winger Antony joined Casemiro in the United arrivals lounge. After a protracted transfer dispute involving Ajax, Antony ultimately signed a long-term deal.

Although Antony hasn’t yet found his best form for United, the 23-year-old has shown plenty of positive indications, prompting Casemiro to compliment both his and Fred’s skills in the middle of the field.

“Antony has incredible quality,” Casemiro said after the win at the Vitality Stadium. “Fred hasn’t played a lot but he has always been giving the best when he has the opportunity to play. He has a really high level. They are really good players.”

The experienced Casemiro has cautioned against complacency as United enters their final two Premier League games needing just a point to secure a spot in the top four ahead of Liverpool. However, even though that would appear achievable, both games are at Old Trafford against Chelsea and Fulham.

“It’s true that we haven’t reached the objective yet,” he said. “We still need one point. We cannot even think about drawing the next game, we need to go out to win the three points in the next game. We cannot be relaxed.

“We know Chelsea aren’t going doing well but they are a huge club that won the Champions League just a few years ago. It’s going to be a really difficult game. We are going to play in our stadium with our fans. Now we know we are really close to our objective, which is to qualify.”

Casemiro discussed the influence of United boss Ten Hag as well, stating that the Dutchman’surprised him’ with his desire to turn around the struggling fortunes of the former 13-time Premier League winners.

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Casemiro has acknowledged that the ‘ambition’ of Manchester United boss Erik Ten Hag at Old Trafford has taken him by surprise.

In both Casemiro and Ten Hag’s first season with the Red Devils, the team’s on-field performances have significantly improved, especially in cup competitions.

Man Utd currently sit in fourth place with just one week of Premier League football left in the 2022/23 season, and could yet do a cup double having already won the Carabao Cup and due to play in the all-Manchester FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium at the start of June.

Casemiro has highlighted that the manager’s desire has propelled the Red Devils on throughout his first season at the club when discussing these victories and his assessment of Ten Hag.

“He has surprised me a lot with his ambition. We have been talking among us, and we have been saying that he is a little bit heavy because he always likes to win,” the Brazilian said.

“He is asking for more because for him 100 per cent is not enough. We have to give more than 100 per cent. He works a lot and is very ambitious. He has the ambition to change the whole club.

“He is a manager who has the respect from all the players and the fans as well. But I think we need to give him time because despite the fact we have already won one title and are quite close to the Champions League, we need more time to grow up. We can see he is changing a lot of things within the club. He is always showing ambition to win.”

On Saturday afternoon, Man Utd defeated a strong Bournemouth team thanks to a fantastic strike from Casemiro.

With the victory, the team now just needs one point from their match against Chelsea on Thursday night to qualify for the UEFA Champions League.

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Erik ten Hag, the manager of Manchester United, gave a long speech about Casemiro’s accomplishments during his first season with the team.

The Brazilian struck an outstanding improvised overhead kick as the Red Devils defeated Bournemouth 1-0 on Saturday. As a result, they just need one point from their next two games, which they will play at home against Chelsea and Fulham, to qualify for the Champions League.

Despite having more than his fair share of conduct issues this season, Casemiro has generally solidified his position as one of the finest midfielders in the Premier League.

Erik Ten was questioned on Casemiro’s ability to ‘meet expectations’ since moving to Old Trafford at his post-match news conference, despite the player’s history as a five-time Champions League champion from Real Madrid.

“Absolutely, by far,” Ten Hag asserted.

“One of the things came out of our analysis was that we missed a player in the midfield, we studied this and we searched for this, it was not easy because there are not many in the profile who fits to the standard of Manchester United.

“We are happy we found him and his contribution is massive. I think even you miss him over eight or nine games through suspension – in the start of the season he wasn’t even there, but when he plays, you bring balance to the midfield and we’ve had a lot of wins with this midfield.

“He keeps surprising you. He’s such a brilliant football player. We know him as very good with organisation, anticipation, winning duels, fighting and keeping the team together but in possession his passing distribution and finishing is very important.”

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David de Gea replied to Casemiro’s lighthearted message, in which the Brazilian quipped to his Manchester United colleague, “Love you d*ckhead.”

Brazilian international Casemiro arrived at Old Trafford in the summer of 2022 after signing a lucrative transfer from Real Madrid, but he has already adapted well to life in England and established himself as a vital member of the Red Devils’ locker room.

In Erik ten Hag’s designs, his qualities both on and off the field have made him a talismanic figure, and the South American is always up for some lighthearted banter that keeps spirits high in the United camp.

Casemiro appears to have grown close with De Gea, with the Spanish goalkeeper revealing on social media that the Brazilian scrawled an “I love you d*ckhead” message on an autograph card. United’s No.1 was happy to play along as he responded with a “love you too bro” post alongside a heart and laughing emoji.

Casemiro has collected two red cards for United this season, forcing him to serve a couple of bans, but he is back at Ten Hag’s disposal now and will be hoping to help the Red Devils add to their Carabao Cup triumph this term as they look to chase down FA Cup and Europa League honours. De Gea, meanwhile, has broken United’s all-time clean sheet record this season and is waiting to discover whether he will be handed a new contract.

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Manchester United manager Erik Ten Hag has revealed that influential midfielder Christian Eriksen is nearing a comeback from injury.

The Danish international has been sidelined since January after being tackled by Andy Carroll during United’s FA Cup victory against Reading at Old Trafford.

Eriksen was previously expected to be sidelined until the end of April, potentially into May, but has recently shared positive anecdotes on social media about his progress in rehabbing the injury.

Although the 31-year-old is unlikely to face his old team Brentford on Wednesday, Ten Hag acknowledged in his news conference before the game that Eriksen is back in full squad training and will soon return to offer some much-needed talent in the midfield.

“Not for tomorrow but he’s returning on the pitch. He’s returned to team training today, so we have to see now how quickly he can make the progress,” the Dutchman said.

“Two quality players,” he continued when asked about Eriksen’s return coinciding with Casemiro’s four-match suspension ending. “The midfield department, games will be decided always in midfield, when you miss two quality players it’s clear. “But you have a squad, if you don’t have them you still have to win.”

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Manchester United midfielder Casemiro is set to captain Brazil in their debut game under interim head coach Ramon Menezes.

Casemiro has led his country 10 times for his former manager Tite over the past several years, so this won’t be his first time. Being given the armband for the first game in a new era, even if it is temporary, is a big step.

Casemiro will lead Brazil out against World Cup semi-finalists Morocco at the Ibn Batouta Stadium in Tangier on Saturday evening.

The 31-year-old was referred to in the first report from the Brazilian site Globoesporte as a “leader and reference” for younger players.

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Menezes has only chosen 10 of the 26 players that travelled to Qatar after Brazil’s quarterfinal loss on penalties forced Tite to resign after six years in management.

The squad has an experimental flavour to it, featuring a number of Brazil-based players and 10 uncapped newcomers – many of whom are under the age of 22. Neymar likely would have been involved but for injury, while Marquinhos and Richarlison both had to withdraw.

Games where Casemiro has been Brazil captain

• Bolivia 0-0 Brazil – 5 October 2017 (World Cup qualifier)
• Panama 1-1 Brazil – 23 March 2019 (Friendly)
• Peru 1-0 Brazil – 11 September 2019 (Friendly)
• Brazil 5-0 Bolivia – 10 October 2020 (World Cup qualifier)
• Brazil 2-0 Ecuador – 5 June 2021 (World Cup qualifier)
• Paraguay 0-2 Brazil – 9 June 2021 (World Cup qualifier)
• Brazil 3-0 Venezuela – 13 June 2021 (Copa America)
• Chile 0-1 Brazil – 3 September 2021 (World Cup qualifier)
• Brazil 2-0 Peru – 10 September 2021 (World Cup qualifier)
• Ecuador 1-1 Brazil – 27 January 2022 (World Cup qualifier)

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In an apparent dig at Arsenal, Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag said that there has only been one occasion this season where he has had a completely available team to pick from.

Due to impact injuries put on by tackles, Ten Hag will be without Christian Eriksen and Alejandro Garnacho for most of the rest of the season. As Casemiro is ready to start a four-game domestic suspension, illness has been a struggle all winter long.

“When you see all season, we have had some setbacks, every time we’ve dealt with it. It’s about the players who are available and every time there’s a team on the pitch who deals with it,” he said. 

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“In just one game we had the squad available totally and I was able to pick my team, from a tactical approach, perfectly – that was against Manchester City at home this season. Every other time it’s been one player suspended, injured, or unavailable through illness.”

The Dutchman then turned his attention to Arsenal, who are currently leading the Premier League and are still on track to win their first title in 19 years.

“We have to deal with it well but Arsenal, all the time their squad is totally available,” he jibed.

It’s not fully accurate to say that. Even though the Gunners have done rather well this season in terms of player availability and fitness, they have just recently welcomed £45 million summer signing Gabriel Jesus back after a significant layoff, while Emile Smith Rowe missed some time due to groin surgery.

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