Aheed Abrar
Erik ten Hag confident about beating Arsenal without in-form Manchester United midfielder Casemiro
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag is confident about the Red Devils’ chances of beating Arsenal without in-form star Casemiro.
The Brazilian picked up his fifth yellow card in the 1-1 draw against Crystal Place on Wednesday (18 January). As a result, the 30-year-old will miss the tie against the Premier League table-toppers.
Speaking to the media via Manchester Evening News, Ten Hag seems to have no regrets about starting the former Real Madrid star against the Eagles. The gaffer was assured about the Red Devils’ chances against the Gunners, having beaten them previously without the five-time Champions League winner.
“First, this game was important. Every game in the Premier League is a top game. Second is Casemiro is obviously a really important player for us, he’s one of the reasons we are where we are now.
“But last time we beat Arsenal without Casemiro so we have a squad, we have to fill the gap, make a proper plan and the squad have to fill it and make sure, as a team. We already showed how to beat Arsenal.”
United had the chance to move into second place with a win over Palace. We almost had the three points in our hands after Bruno Fernandes gave us the lead in the first half.
However, the Eagles looked threatening for the most part after the break. They created a few opportunities but were denied by David de Gea. However, the Spaniard was a bystander as Michael Olise scored a mesmerising free-kick in stoppage time to break the Red Devils’ hearts.
The Old Trafford side were on a nine-game winning run in all competitions before Patrick Vieira’s team managed to snatch a point in the end.
Casemiro has been an integral part of the team this season. He has started the last 12 games in the PL for United. Alongside Christian Eriksen, the Brazilian has cemented his place in the Red Devils’ engine room.
In the reverse fixture against Arsenal, the 30-year-old was still finding his feet in Manchester. We had started with Scott McTominay and Eriksen in the middle of the park and beat the Gunners 3-1.
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The Old Trafford side are the only team to have beaten the Gunners in the league in the current campaign. There is no doubt we are capable of doing the same on Sunday (22 January).
