Man Utd coaching staff’s reaction to Casemiro booking speaks volumes

Man Utd boss ten Hag remembers last trip to Crystal Palace

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Manchester United coaching staff were spotted slumping in their chairs following Casemiro’s booking against Crystal Palace on Wednesday night, according to reports. The Brazil international has been a huge hit ever since his summer arrival from Real Madrid. And his fifth yellow card of the campaign means he’s now ruled out of Sunday’s crunch showdown with Arsenal.

Manchester United have seen the best from Casemiro since his blockbuster move, with the veteran becoming a regular under Erik ten Hag.

However, they’ll now have to cope without him against Arsenal on Sunday after the 30-year-old picked up his fifth yellow card of the season.

Casemiro was booked for a foul on former United star Wilfried Zaha – meaning he’s now obtained a suspension.

And, according to The Athletic, United staff members were spotted slumping in their chairs in the direct aftermath of the incident.

That speaks volumes, with Casemiro’s absence set to be a major blow as they look to put their fellow title rivals to the sword over the weekend.

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The Brazil international has arguably been the club’s player of the season, going from strength to strength as he continues to adjust to life in the Premier League.

United have lost just one Premier League game he’s started this term – the 3-1 loss at Aston Villa – with the midfielder striking up a good relationship with Christian Eriksen.

Ten Hag and his team-mates have lavished praise on the stalwart after virtually every single match in the time since.

But United will now need to replace Casemiro as they look to do the double over Arsenal, who are dreaming of a first league title since 2004.

Scott McTominay came on late against Palace and is one potential option, with the Scotland international previously above his team-mate in Ten Hag’s pecking order.

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Fred is another, having dropped to the bench following his heroics against Manchester City over the weekend.

And United could even be tempted to use Lisandro Martinez as a midfielder, despite the Argentina international being a centre-back by trade.

Reacting to Casemiro’s booking after the game, Ten Hag admitted the midfielder felt he had no other choice but to foul Zaha.

“From my perspective [they should have had a penalty] but VAR and the referee make the decision. We have to accept it,” he said.

“The last time we beat Arsenal without Casemiro so this time we need to do the same.

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“The booking was instinctive. He missed the ball. It’s quite clear it could have been a dangerous situation. He wanted to stop it and that was his reaction.”

United goalkeeper David De Gea, meanwhile, has admitted he was disappointed at seeing his team-mate pick up a ban.

“One of our best players cannot play one of the best teams,” De Gea lamented.

“I don’t understand why we had to play today and they didn’t, that could make the difference on Sunday. He is a big loss for us.”

As for Palace boss Patrick Vieira, he felt his side deserved a draw. He stated: “I think we deserved the point.

“Really challenging against a really good side. We found it difficult to close them down but we managed to stay in the game.

“In the last 15 minutes we put pressure on them. Michael scored that free-kick. It was tough, we worked hard and we got rewarded. I saw organisation, really good team spirit, communication. We kept our discipline and that helped us stay in the game.

“We had that Wilfried [Zaha] run at the end. If it was a different player [than Aaron Wan-Bissaka] he wouldn’t catch him.

“That was a tough game against a good side. We needed luck to stay in the game, but we provoked that luck.”

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