Casemiro promised that he would “fix” Manchester United even before he arrived - a promise that he could fulfil this weekend.
The Brazilian has proven to be an excellent signing for the Red Devils following a £70m move from Real Madrid last summer. He has been a near ever-present for United and could help the club to two trophies come the end of the season.
Erik ten Hag’s men have already won the Carabao Cup and could add the FA Cup to that collection as they take on rivals Manchester City at Wembley on Saturday. That represents a dramatic turnaround for the side under Ten Hag.
Defeats to Brighton and Brentford – the latter a crushing 4-0 defeat – left United bottom of the Premier League and raised doubts over the wisdom of appointing Ten Hag. But Casemiro did not hesitate and has since shared he had no regrets.
He texted his agent in the aftermath of the defeat and said: “Tell them [United] I’ll fix this.”
“I had no second thoughts at all,” recalled Casemiro. “I was aware my period at Real Madrid had come to an end and I was really upbeat about coming here and taking on this new challenge.
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“I knew it wouldn't be an easy challenge, but we knew there was still a long way to go in the season. It was a project in which you wouldn't start winning things overnight. There would be a lot of work to do.
“But it wasn't just me, it was together with the staff and my team-mates. They deserve a lot of credit for this, as do all of the staff, in turning the season around, when you look at how we started in relation to how we finished.”
Since then, his decision to join United has been vindicated after a fine debut season. Casemiro has gone on to make 50 appearances for the club in all competitions. Whilst more of a defensive midfielder, he has also shown his attacking instincts with seven goals and six assists.
With his success at Real Madrid, Casemiro knows what it takes to build a successful team and is convinced United are on the right path with Ten Hag ahead of this weekend’s FA Cup final.
“We're in the process of building and we’re aware of what the manager wants from us,” said Casemiro. "We're building on that mentality he’s giving us and we know that he's growing with the team.
“We know every day, every game is vitally important for us, but I think we're on a good path, growing and are moving forwards. The club have already won a trophy, the Carabao Cup, and we've clinched third place in the Premier League and now we're in a final.
“Everyone connected with Manchester United would love to win it. We know it's a one-off game and a very tough one, but we're really pumped up to try and win it.”
