Manchester United star Casemiro had a poor performance during the 1-1 draw against Burnley in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon.
The Brazilian midfielder has played as a makeshift central defender in the last few games for Man United with the likes of Lisandro Martinez, Raphael Varane, Victor Lindelof, Jonny Evans and Willy Kambwala out injured.
Against Burnley, he lined up alongside Harry Maguire in central defence and was far from comfortable over 90 minutes. He was poor with his distribution and completed only 69% of his passes and lost possession 19 times.
The £26 million star was also dribbled past twice during the game and was responsible for Burnley’s equaliser from the penalty spot. The former Real Madrid man tried to head the ball back to Andre Onana, who ended up fouling Zeki Amdouni.
Manager Erik ten Hag’s hands are tied at the moment with the major defensive injury crisis. Casemiro has looked far from comfortable from the position, but the Dutchman has no other senior options to rely upon for the role.
Scott McTominay is the best makeshift alternative after the veteran midfielder, but the United graduate suffered a fresh setback after coming on as a substitute against the Clarets. It appears he may have suffered a season-ending injury.
United were in good spirits heading into the international break in March, but things have gone pear-shaped since the restart. They have won just 1 of their last 6 league games and have work to do to qualify for the Europa League.
They are currently 6th in the table with 54 points, but only 1 ahead of Newcastle United whom they face in the penultimate game week at home. They also have games against Crystal Palace, Arsenal and Brighton & Hove Albion.
Ten Hag will be hoping that his team can form a winning streak over the forthcoming weeks such that they can go into the FA Cup final against Manchester City in late May in a reasonable shape. They will start as underdogs.
