Over the years, Manchester United’s recruitment has been extremely disappointing and somewhat bizarre.
The signing of Casemiro is evidence of this, with the £70m man now looking likely to leave the club this summer after two seasons.
Saudi Arabia is a potential destination, which only further highlights that the 32-year-old is past his best.
With that in mind, it would be no surprise to see Sir Jim Ratcliffe sell the midfielder this summer, and another United ace looks set to join him on the transfer list.
The latest on Christian Eriksen’s future at Man Utd
This week, Football Insider revealed that Christian Eriksen wants to leave Man Utd after the European Championship.
It’s mentioned that the Denmark international is ‘ready to quit,’ following a disappointing 2023/24 campaign.
The 32-year-old has just 12 months remaining on his contract, but his future at Man Utd is uncertain.
Clubs from Turkey and Saudi Arabia are looking at making a move for the midfielder, and United won’t stand in his way this summer if he does choose to depart.
Why Eriksen and Casemiro must be sold
During Erik ten Hag’s first campaign in charge, Casemiro and Eriksen were often relied upon in the middle of the park.
In such a short spell, they've played 54 games together, and alongside Bruno Fernandes, they went on an excellent run of form that saw them go unbeaten as a trio until April 2023.
However, last season, the duo struggled to be anywhere near as influential, with the Dane starting just 12 times and boasting an average of 53 minutes per game in the Premier League.
The former Real Madrid star’s involvement was much more frequent, featuring 24 times from the off in the league, with an injury preventing that from being higher.
Yet, during United’s best performance of the entire campaign, against Manchester City in the FA Cup final, neither Eriksen nor Casemiro played a single minute, which indicates the future of the Red Devils’ midfield will be better off without the experienced duo.
PL starts
12
24
PL goal contributions
3
3
Market Value
£4.2m
£17m
Weekly Wage
£150k
£350k
Average Sofascore Rating
6.86
7.17
The main issue for both Casemiro and Eriksen is their huge decline in physicality and athleticism, which are absolutely key for any midfielder in the Premier League,
Football creator Liam Canning has been particularly vocal on that issue, taking to X to say that ‘they can’t defend transitions’ and ‘players run past them like they’re not there.’
Furthermore, from an off-field perspective, both players are continuously decreasing in value, according to CIES’ Football Observatory, which means that this summer may provide the best opportunity to raise funds.
On top of that, the duo are high earners within the squad, both having a salary higher than the likes of Alejandro Garnacho, Diogo Dalot, and Rasmus Hojlund, who are very much the future at Old Trafford.
With all those factors combined and the fact that Eriksen wants to leave, it seems that the best decision for both parties will be an exit, and therefore, United must sell Eriksen this summer, as well as Casemiro.
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