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Manchester United midfielder Casemiro reportedly told Erik ten Hag that he didn’t want to play in the FA Cup final against Manchester City because he didn’t feel fully fit.
United beat City 2-1 at Wembley on Saturday to clinch the trophy and bring some joy during what has been a disappointing season.
Goals from Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo within the opening 45 minutes were enough to secure the glorious victory for the Red Devils.
The night before the cup final, it came out that there was a strong chance Casemiro would be benched for the clash vs. City.
It was stated that Ten Hag held many training sessions in which the line-ups didn’t feature Casemiro. It was therefore not a huge surprise that he wasn’t included in the starting XI to take on Pep Guardiola’s men.
Ten Hag deployed a midfield trio of Sofyan Amrabat, Kobbie Mainoo and Bruno Fernandes – the three worked well as a unit.
There was no place for Casemiro even in the backline as Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez formed the centre-back pairing.
Before kick-off, there was confusion because Casemiro’s name appeared on the official team sheet. It was then revealed that United made a late change and replaced the Brazilian with Willy Kambwala because he was not 100% fit.
A report from Brazil claimed the opposite and suggested that Casemiro was actually not injured. It also hinted at possible problems between the five-time Champions League winner and Ten Hag.
Fuel was added to the fire soon after as the 32-year-old was pictured jetting off with his family on holiday, all while his teammates were out celebrating their FA Cup triumph.
However, according to BBC’s Simon Stone, there is no bad blood between player and manager.
The newspaper states, “Manager Erik ten Hag said before the game at Wembley the Brazilian was not 100% fit but named him on the bench anyway after his recent outings in central defence.”
“However, although Casemiro’s name appeared on the official team sheet, he told Ten Hag he felt a tight hamstring and told his manager he didn’t want to play any part.”
Stone also notes that Casemiro made an appearance at United’s post-game celebrations but he left quickly to head out with his family for a much-deserved break.
This information is corroborated by The Athletic who explain, “One of those to depart early was Casemiro, who shared a photo of himself on a private jet with his wife and two children while celebrations were still ongoing at the Marriott. The 32-year-old delayed the jet’s departure for two hours in order to attend the after-party and was present for Ten Hag and Fernandes’ speeches, risking the €140,000 (£119,000; $152,000) he had paid for the flight.”
Now that the matter has been clarified, the elephant in the room is Casemiro’s United future. The former Real Madrid man continues to be strongly linked with a move to Saudi Arabia, with INEOS thought to be eager to get his hefty wages off the club’s books.
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