20 January 2023 , 16:31
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Gary Neville fears Arsenal will beat Manchester United because Casemiro is not available after the midfielder picked up his fifth yellow card of the season at Crystal Palace.
The 30-year-old was cautioned following a late tackle on Wilfried Zaha, meaning he will miss the trip to Emirates Stadium after picking up his fifth booking before the 20th league match of the campaign. Bruno Fernandes put United ahead at Selhurst Park in what was their 19th game before Michael Olise equalised late on.
There were calls that Erik ten Hag should've rested Casemiro for the game against Palace, as he was walking on a suspension tight-rope before the trip to Arsenal. However, Neville claims that Ten Hag made the right decision by playing the Brazilian ace, given the quality Palace possess.
"Casemiro getting booked ahead of Sunday is a massive blow because he's been pivotal for him [Ten Hag]," Neville toldSky Sports. "I thought Casemiro would play, I didn't buy into this idea that he'd be rested, because Crystal Palace are too good a team.
"It wasn't a good challenge either, to be fair, it could have been an orange, nearer to a red than a yellow, it happens though. Manchester United have got to pick it up now, it's a massive game on Sunday against Arsenal.
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"It’s just a bit of a blip for United, but if you'd have offered four points before the derby, you'd have taken it. But to win that [the Manchester derby] and be 1-0 up in the 90th minute, it's just disappointing."
Casemiro will miss Manchester United's trip to Arsenal (Getty Images)Will Manchester United beat Arsenal on Sunday? Let us know in the comments below!
Ten Hag's side sit third in the Premier League table, nine points behind leaders Arsenal heading into the game, and they can close the gap with a win over their rivals. The Gunners have won 15 of their 18 league matches and are in a strong position to go and lift the title this term, despite there being so many points to play for.
However, United are the only side to beat Arsenal in the Premier League this season and they did that without Casemiro from the start, as the former Real Madrid man came on as a substitute in that game. Antony's strike and a Marcus Rashford double earned a vital win for United - but Neville doesn't believe it will be the same outcome this weekend.
He continued: "They (United) beat them (Arsenal) without Casemiro last time. They're going to have to play extremely well, defend well, especially in the first half hour when Arsenal are electric, but they don't have a great bench.
"If you get through that first period of the game, what you're going to face is what you're going to face later on in the game. They had that problem against Newcastle, who defended really well against them. But Arsenal are in great form, massive favourites for the game with Casemiro out.
"United have got to hang in there for the first part of the game and they are dangerous on the counter-attack. But without Casemiro, I expect Arsenal to win on Sunday."