Desperate in their search for midfielders and after facing rejections from Frenkie de Jong and Adrien Rabiot, Manchester United decided to pull the trigger on Real Madrid’s Casemiro. The Brazilian international has already parted ways with Los Blancos and will be having his medical with the Old Trafford-based outfit soon.
The club announced the signing of the 30-year-old. The deal is subject to pending medical clearance as well as sorting out visa issues, but after much rejection and disappointment in the transfer market, United manager Erik ten Hag finally has a reliable name in the middle of the park that he had been hoping for.
For several months now, the Red Devils had wanted to convince ten Hag’s former student de Jong to leave FC Barcelona but the Dutch international has not budged from his intentions of staying put at the Catalan club, despite the negative media noise surrounding him.
United then tried to lure in wantaway Juventus midfielder Adrien Rabiot but negotiations with his mother and agent Veronique were proving difficult. Because of these constant rejections as well as the intense fan pressure following their embarrassing 4-0 debacle against Brentford following the loss to Brighton earlier, United finally decided to pull the trigger and sign Casemiro for a 70 million euros overall package.
The deal is structured at a 60 million fixed fee which would rise by over 10 million in add-ons if several conditions and clauses in his contract are met. Casemiro has been signed for a contract of four years with the option of extending it by another 12 months, with the transfer subject to the agreement of personal terms.
“Manchester United is delighted to announce that the club has reached agreement with Real Madrid for the transfer of Casemiro,”
“The transfer is subject to the agreement of personal terms, UK visa requirements and a medical,”
a statement from United said.
Casemiro, who had joined Real Madrid from Sao Paulo in 2013, has been a key figure for the Spanish giants. He was part of an excellent midfield partnership with Toni Kroos and Luka Modric at the Santiago Bernabeu, which was the basis of their five Champions League victories, the most recent one arriving last season. The Brazilian has also won three La Liga titles.
He will be united with his former Real Madrid teammates Raphael Varane and Cristiano Ronaldo in the dressing room at Old Trafford.
