Casemiro, a midfielder for Manchester United, displayed superb play in Thursday night’s 1-0 Europa League victory over Real Betis.
Erik ten Hag, the manager of the Red Devils, decided to start a strong lineup despite the team’s overwhelming 4-1 advantage from the first leg of the round of 16 match at Old Trafford.
Betis put in their best effort to score, but they were unable to get past David de Gea.
There was no surprise that Marcus Rashford took home the prize, however. He missed a clear opportunity to score but quickly atoned for it with a spectacular 30-yard field goal.
Rashford was named the game’s MVP for his outstanding goal, but in our perspective, Casemiro was outstanding in midfield once more, winning several crucial duels and tackles.
The Brazilian managed to put on an impressive performance while restraining his aggression despite facing the possibility of another European suspension with a booking.
The 31-year-old made 63 passes on 106 touches throughout the course of 90 minutes. He won four tackles and eleven duels. On a few occasions, he got dribbled past, but that was okay.
Casemiro would typically try to foul his opponents when they were in mid-air, but he avoided doing so yesterday out of concern about picking up his third caution of the season.
With the history of his yellow cards being cleared after yesterday’s game, Casemiro is no longer in danger of facing a European suspension. His next United outing will now have to wait for some time.
The midfielder’s red card against Southampton results in a four-game domestic suspension. The first leg of the Europa League quarterfinal will therefore be on April 13, after which he won’t play again.
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