Rio Ferdinand has laughed off Graeme Souness’ suggestion that new Manchester United signing Casemiro has “never been a great player”.
After spending the last couple of months targeting Frenkie de Jong, the Red Devils have swooped to sign Casemiro from Real Madrid.
Talks progressed quickly and the midfielder was unveiled before Man Utd’s victory against Liverpool at Old Trafford on Monday night.
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The fee for Casemiro could reach £70m with add-ons with Real Madrid set to receive an initial £60m.
This is a lot for a 30-year-old defensive midfielder and it does come across that Man Utd have panicked after wasting a lot of time chasing De Jong.
But Casemiro does at least come with great pedigree, as he has won the Champions League on five separate occasions with Real Madrid.
The Brazilian plays alongside Fred on the international stage and he is rightly renowned as one of the best defensive midfielders in the world.
This is not a view held by Liverpool legend Souness, however:
“You’re getting a ‘steady Eddie’,” Souness claimed.
“He was playing with great players, he’s not a great player, he’s never been a great player. I don’t think he’s got any great range of passing, I don’t think he’s going to make other people play.
“I think he was lucky to be in that Real Madrid team, I never look forward to watching Casemiro play, [Karim] Benzema, yes, the other players, definitely. I never think I’m really excited to watch Casemiro.”
Admittedly, this is an odd take from Souness. Panic buy or not, Casemiro is well-set to shine for United given his experience and ability.
This is as long as he is not overcome by the post-Sir Alex Ferguson transfer curse at Manchester United.
Erik ten Hag’s players put in a much-improved performance against Liverpool compared to their opening two games.
It is yet to be seen if this will continue in the coming weeks, but there is more optimism around the club for now at least.
Ferdinand has had a dig at Souness as he is excited to see how Casemiro can make an impact for United:
“Do you know what it is, I think it is because Sky Sports don’t do Champions League (coverage),” Ferdinand joked on his Vibe with FIVE YouTube channel.
“My man has five Champions Leagues – you (Souness) don’t watch it! Imagine adding Casemiro to that team with the way they played today, I’m licking my lips, man.”
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