"Needs to retire" - Manchester United fans demand sale of midfielder who is 'as slow as a snail' after 1-2 Arsenal defeat
Manchester United fans have slammed Casemiro on X, with some even wanting him to retire, after he struggled to impress in their 1-2 defeat to Arsenal. The two Premier League giants faced each other in a pre-season friendly at the SoFi Stadium on Saturday, July 27.
The Red Devils grabbed an early lead via Rasmus Hojlund's 10th-minute goal. However, the Dane was forced off with an injury six minutes later. Gabriel Jesus then leveled the scores in the 26th minute to make it 1-1. To make matters worse, new summer signing Leny Yoro also limped off with an injury in the 35th minute.
Gabriel Martinelli scored in the 81st minute to give Arsenal the win, as Manchester United suffered their second defeat in three pre-season friendlies.
Casemiro struggled in midfield in the first half, before being replaced during the break. The former Real Madrid superstar created zero chances, was dribbled past twice, and lost three duels, often finding himself overrun in the middle of the park.
He has been linked with a possible transfer to the Saudi Pro League this summer following his struggles with Manchester United last season.
One fan criticized Casemiro by posting:
"Casemiro needs to retire"
Another fan tweeted:
"Casemiro is so slow than a snail now. Man need to be shipped to Greece or Saudi before season starts."
Other reactions can be viewed below:
"I’ve said my bit about Casemiro, we absolutely do not need a player like him at the club any more. All that talk about happy to keep him is utter bs. They better go sign zubimendi, urgarte or Fofana for us," one fan insisted.
"I believe everyone understands why I keep threatening Casemiro to leave my club since last week," one fan typed.
"Casemiro has to go too much times his passing is off and u cant afford that in his position," another added.
"Our attack was really solid yesterday, the midfield really struggled to retain possession and progress the ball. Hannibal, mctominey, maguire, Casemiro and Antony are rubbish," one fan posted.
"Casemiro must be sold quickly," another claimed.
Arsenal 2-1 Manchester United: Exploring the stats from their pre-season friendly
Mikel Arteta's Arsenal bounced back from their 1-1 draw against Bournemouth to defeat Manchester United 2-1 in their pre-season friendly on Saturday. Let's take a look at the stats to see how both sides fared against each other.
Ten Hag and company only had 42 percent possession compared to Arsenal's 58. The latter also attempted more passes with 449 with an accuracy of 85 percent, whereas the Red Devils attempted 323 passes with an accuracy of 76 percent.
However, Manchester United had more opportunities in attack, despite losing Hojlund to injury early in the first half. They landed 10 shots in total with three being on target, while Arsenal mustered six shots with three being on target.
The Red Devils next face Real Betis in a friendly on Wednesday, July 31, while Arsenal lock horns against Liverpool on the same day.