Casemiro still has two years left on his contract with Manchester United but the match against Liverpool could be the end of his career at Old Trafford.
At half-time – Liverpool leading 2-0 – the Brazilian threw the ball forward to relieve the pressure. There were boos from the stands, and Alejandro Garnacho, standing next to Casemiro, also threw his arms up in frustration.
That was also the last mark of Casemiro when Ten Hag decided to take the Brazilian midfielder off after the first half. Toby Collyer - a player only 20 years old, made his first appearance. Perhaps, more than ever, Ten Hag wanted to immediately use new signing Manuel Ugarte, who moved from Paris St Germain this summer.
"That's what the team needed. You know, when Man United were 2 goals behind Liverpool, I had to take more risks, the game was very open. I have to praise the team because they continued to fight and unite" - Ten Hag said about the decision to replace Casemiro.
The fiery Uruguayan defensive midfielder was on the pitch before kick-off but failed to register. After Casemiro’s horror show, Ugarte is likely to feature after September’s FIFA Days.
In just 45 minutes, Casemiro lost the ball 13 times and made 2 mistakes that directly led to goals. In the 35th minute, Casemiro made a bad pass and Liverpool immediately seized the opportunity to quickly change the situation. From Mohamed Salah's cross on the right wing, Luis Diaz comfortably headed the ball, putting the away team up 1-0.
With three minutes left in the first half, Casemiro was dispossessed by Diaz. The Colombian player initiated a counter-attack before finishing with a tricky one-touch shot, thereby increasing the score to 2-0.
After the match, captain Bruno Fernandes spoke up to defend Casemiro: "What's the point of criticizing Casemiro for losing the ball or Kobbie Mainoo for losing the ball? That's part of football. Don't make it personal.
Casemiro has more experience than me. He has played for two of the best clubs in the world. I don't need to tell him anything, because Casemiro knows what football is."
Although Casemiro played poorly, he can still be partly sympathized with when looking at the smooth operation of Liverpool's midfield.
Both teams started with three in midfield: Casemiro, Fernandes and Mainoo for Man United , while Liverpool had Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai. While the Reds' midfielders were like cogs in a well-oiled machine, the Red Devils' midfield was inexplicably fragile.
Gravenberch played brilliantly, winning 100% of his challenges and winning the ball back 6 times. The Dutch midfielder and Mac Allister supported each other, combining well.
In the 6th minute of the match, just one pass from Virgil van Dijk almost eliminated Man United's midfield. And luckily for them, Alexander-Arnold's goal was disallowed for offside.
Mainoo, meanwhile, could have been sent off before half-time for two challenges as he attempted to cover large gaps in midfield.
