Man Utd must cash in on 4/10 flop who’s now worth even less than Casemiro
It's a sad thing in football to watch a world-class star decay into inferiority, but this is unfortunately what has happened to Manchester United midfielder Casemiro.
The Brazil international has won it all, anchored one of the most incredible midfield triumvirates in the modern game at Real Madrid, partnered with Toni Kroos and Luka Modric.
He's won five Champions League titles, three La Liga championships. Casemiro has been heralded as a "monster" by former Los Blancos boss Zinedine Zidane, while last season, at Old Trafford, Marcus Rashford hailed the tough-tackling titan as "essential" following triumph over Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup final.
But after years of elite-level success, the 32-year-old Casemiro has fallen, closing his second campaign in the Premier League – after transferring from Real Madrid in a jaw-dropping £70m deal in August 2022 – with not so much a whimper as a cry for the end.
Casemiro, at the heart of it, is one of the finest midfielders in a generation, with his crunching, commanding displays in the engine room facilitating success as such that most players can only dream of – and even then, such wistful longing is beyond the scope of the many.
As per FBref, the £350k-per-week ace still ranks among the top 8% of centre-midfielders across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for goals, the top 2% for tackles and the top 1% for blocks and clearances per 90.
But his performances this season have been lamentable and recent blunders against the likes of Crystal Palace and Arsenal have illuminated just how heavily he has slumped, error-strewn and immobile. He must be sold with haste if Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS hope to make significant progress over the coming years.
Casemiro might be bottom of the barrel at the Theatre right now but he's certainly not the only struggle that should be shipped on, with Aaron Wan-Bissaka also proving that he is not deserving of a place in the starting 11 at the beginning of a new era.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka's season in numbers
Wan-Bissaka has endured an injury-hit campaign to fit with the narrative at Man United, where the performances on the pitch have been dire but this has been down in large part to the catalogue of setbacks that have stifled Erik ten Hag and his team.
Still, he's chalked up 187 appearances for his side and featured five times as United won the Carabao Cup last term, but injuries and a lack of roundedness have seen him lose his way, no longer the undisputed first choice at right-back.
This season, as per Sofascore, the 26-year-old has completed 209 appearances in the Premier League, and while he has showcased trademark defensive skills, he has not offered the complete style needed to improve Man United.
Completing only 82% of his passes and averaging 0.5 key passes per game, Wan-Bissaka is not confident or crisp enough in possession, also creating only one big chance and completing just 0.8 dribbles each game.
His intrinsic defensive ability is there, ever discernible, but it's only led toward two clean sheets from 20 outings, albeit making two tackles, 1.9 interceptions and 2.6 clearances per match and winning 61% of his 4.2 duels won each appearance.
Last time out, during the 1-0 home defeat against Arsenal, the aforementioned Casemiro was the worst of the bunch but his right-back didn't help matters, branded with a 4/10 match rating by the Manchester Evening News' Samuel Luckhurst, who wrote:
'Was struggling to keep tabs on Trossard before he was blindsided by the Belgian for the opener. Risk-aversive with his passing.'
Diogo Dalot – who has been forced to play on the left amid the injury crisis – is the number one on the right side of the rearguard and Wan-Bissaka's value has deflated to reflect his decreased worth within Ten Hag's squad.
Why Man Utd should sell Aaron Wan-Bissaka
Man United signed Wan-Bissaka from Crystal Palace in a whopping £50m deal back in 2019, making him the club's fifth-most expensive player at the time.
He started strong but has withered as his time has gone on and now, despite his age, has seen his market price whittled down considerably.
23/24
20
18
6.73
22/23
19
16
6.93
21/22
20
20
6.91
20/21
34
34
7.15
19/20
35
34
7.19
Indeed, according to CIES Football Observatory's financial-evaluating system, Wan-Bissaka is worth just £13m at present, marking a £37m nosedive – or, in other words, a 74% decrease.
This actually means that he has fallen further than the ageing Casemiro, who still holds a £17m market price despite his withering quality on the field.
He's a crisp passer with sharp defensive tools, ranking among the top 17% of full-backs across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for pass completion, the top 1% for interceptions and the top 4% for clearances per 90.
But he's ebbed away from his past position as power as one of the finest defensive wide defenders in the business, with Jamie Carragher dubbing him the "best one-on-one full-back in the world" back in 2020, when he was averaging 3.7 tackles and 7.1 successful duels per top-flight fixture, winning 66% of the latter.
His decreased output in this regard is a by-product of injuries and years of inconsistency and toil in a hostile Manchester United environment, and now rumours are bubbling away regarding his imminent departure from Old Trafford.
Wan-Bissaka has not been aided by the continual improvements made by Dalot either, with the Portuguese, aged 25, offering the full package and even remarked to have been Ten Hag's "best player" in 2023/24 by Statman Dave.
Dalot will not wish to relinquish his starting berth any time soon, and given that the Englishman is out of contract at the end of next season, the looming summer might be the right moment to part ways.
For Ratcliffe and Ten Hag, a certain streak of ruthlessness must be displayed to rise from this fallen position and challenge those at the forefront of the Premier League and the continent once again.
Steady, slow steps must be taken, but the right moves must be made and Wan-Bissaka must be sold this summer alongside Casemiro to stem the rot and move toward a new, promising era.
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