'Massive investment' - Casemiro is NOT a 'smart' signing for Man United, despite 'devastating' impact at Old Trafford

Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville believes that Casemiro was “not a smart” signing for Manchester United after highlighting the “massive investment” the club made for his transfer.

United manager Erik ten Hag brought Casemiro to Old Trafford from Real Madrid last summer after the Red Devils splashed out a deal worth up to £70m.

Casemiro, who inked a four-year deal, reportedly earns a hefty £350,000 per week at Old Trafford and is the club’s second highest-paid player behind David de Gea.

The 31-year-old Brazilian midfielder’s arrival at United was met with some criticism, with Casemiro’s age and lack of Premier League experience raising potential concerns.

However, Casemiro silenced any doubt about his signing after his influence -- and subsequent impact -- significantly transformed United’s midfield this season.

The former Madrid star has forged an effective partnership with fellow summer signing Christian Eriksen, who is currently sidelined with an injury, at United.

Casemiro opened the scoring for United in their 2-0 win over Newcastle at Wembley in the League Cup final on Sunday, with the Brazil star securing his first major piece of silverware at the club.

Speaking after the League Cup final, Neville insisted that the United midfielder has been “devastating for the club in unbelievable ways.”

However, the United legend refused to overlook the “£170m investment” that the Red Devils would need to spend on Casemiro over his time at the club.

“I feel like Ten Hag is not going to sign [marquee names],” Neville said in a video on The Overlap’s YouTube channel.

READ MORE:

• Man United fans discussing what Paul Pogba could have been with Casemiro alongside him
• The one moment in the Carabao Cup final where Casemiro earned Roy Keane’s approval
• Casemiro pretended to step on Christian Eriksen’s injured foot during celebrations

“If new owners come in, they’re going to want to make a statement, they’ll want to blow the transfer market open. I don’t think that will suit him.

“I think he’ll want those younger, hungrier ones that have still got that growth rather than the finished article.

“Casemiro obviously defeats that a little bit, but you look at Antony and Lisandro Martinez, they’re younger and hungrier.

“I think that’s the type of player he’ll want to add to this squad rather than saying, ‘Oh, Kylian Mbappe’s available or so-and-so is available.’

“But Casemiro, there’s no doubt -- we all said it by the way -- £60m? £70m? And £20m-a-year [contract] for five years is a £170m investment.

“That is a massive investment. It’s not a smart or shrewd signing when you look at it from a [big picture] point of view. None of us thought that.

“But the impact he’s having in the short term and what Manchester United need now, he’s devastating for the club in unbelievable ways.”

Topics: Casemiro, Manchester United, Premier League, England, Football, Gary Neville

Adnan Riaz

Adnan Riaz is a journalist for SPORTbible. He studied for a B.A. in History at the University of York and followed it up with an M.A. in Multimedia Journalism at MMU. Before he started writing about sports, he spent over four years in the gaming press. He has worked for several publications, including Hardcore Gamer, LADbible and the Manchester Evening News. Follow him on Twitter to find out what he is working on next. Got a story tip for Adnan? Email him: [email protected]

@AdnanRiaz9