Aniket Rai
Erik ten Hag gives reason for benching Casemiro for Manchester United vs Southampton
When Manchester United announced their lineup for the clash against Southampton today, there were a few surprises.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Harry Maguire were benched for the second game in a row. Ten Hag stuck with the same team that beat Liverpool 2-1 at Old Trafford last Monday.
However, there was one name that United fans were half expecting to start against the Saints at St. Mary’s Stadium. Casemiro joined the Red Devils from Real Madrid recently for a deal that could reach £70million.
Before the game, Ten Hag himself claimed that the Brazil international was fit for the games ahead. Speaking to reporters before the game (h/t Metro), the Dutch manager explained his decision to bench the five-time UEFA Champions League winner.
“There is also to give Casemiro the time, he hasn’t played one game for 90 minutes, he has to adapt to England, he has to adapt to Man United and to give him the time to integrate in the team.”
However, the decision to bench him cannot come as a total surprise, as people would have equally questioned his decision had he opted to start him given how less he would have trained with the Red Devils.
A substitute appearance today would be enough to get the fans going wild once again. He made an appearance at Old Trafford on the day of our derby against the Reds.
And today, we can finally see him in our colours for the first time in a competitive game. It also remains to be seen who will make way for Casemiro in our starting XI in the long run.
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One of Fred or Scott McTominay is the most likely guess.
