18 August 2023 , 10:00
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Jamie Carragher has claimed Manchester United signing Casemiro for £70 million last summer took them out of the race for better deals this time around.
The Red Devils toiled in the transfer market last summer, as Erik ten Hag attempted to find a holding midfielder following his arrival as manager. His focus was directed towards Barcelona ’s Frenkie de Jong, with Camp Nou bosses eager to sell.
However, after being snubbed by his former player, Ten Hag pivoted to De Jong’s El Clasico rival and secured the signing of Casemiro from Real Madrid.
Aged 30 when he arrived at Old Trafford, the five-time Champions League winner instantly added the kind of steel United had been sorely lacking under Ten Hag’s predecessors. Despite that, Liverpool legend Carragher believes the warning signs were present that he was a short-term fix rather than a long-term solution.
A year on, several of United’s rivals have moved to improve their own situation in midfield, with Arsenal signing Declan Rice for £105m and Chelsea spending a combined £222m for first Enzo Fernandez and then Moises Caicedo.
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But Carragher, who called out the Brazilian following United’s season opener, thinks that in the long run those deals will represent better value for money with the Red Devils likely to be back in the market in the near future.
“Chelsea broke the British transfer record to sign Enzo Fernandez after the World Cup and then broke it again seven months later by signing Moises Caicedo, while Arsenal also landed Declan Rice for £105 million this summer,” he explained in his Telegraph column.
And while describing those prices as astronomical, he added: “They are also good deals. The proof of that is the £70 million Manchester United paid last summer for Casemiro. The Brazilian will end up costing United more than Arsenal and Chelsea paid for Rice and Caicedo.”
Casemiro was off the pace against Wolves at Old TraffordThe Sky Sports pundit suggested the London rivals played a premium for longevity, whereas United still splashed the cash on a player he deems past his best. “I never believed Casemiro would be value for money,” he added. “Not because there is any doubt that he has been a world-class player. But because he is at a stage of his career when he cannot not fully repay United’s massive fee.
“He was a panic buy when he joined a year ago, he is precisely the kind of signing United have been moving away from this summer as they look to the future.”
Carragher argued that for all of his immediate impact, the allocation of resources wasn’t wise, with a replacement needed in the next two years. He added that the signing of Casemiro also stopped them from being able to go after a player in the ilk of Rice or Caicedo during this window.
He said: “They did not challenge Arsenal and Chelsea for Caicedo, Romeo Lavia, Fernandez or Rice because they felt Casemiro was the same profile of midfielder when they went big for him.
“Casemiro has four years left on a reported £300,000-a-week Old Trafford contract, United still have a massive financial commitment on their hands. It has already cost them the chance to buy a younger alternative.”
The 31-year-old endured a torrid start to his second season in the Premier League, with a dynamic Wolves midfield dominating the opener at Old Trafford. United somehow escaped with a fortuitous 1-0 win, but question marks about the balance of Ten Hag’s midfield remain.
"I have a feeling at some stage, Casemiro is going to get really exposed," Carragher said on Monday Night Football. Fellow pundit and United legend Gary Neville hinted he agreed: "Manchester United's midfield was non-existent, it emptied.”
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