Rio Ferdinand has heaped praise on Man United star Casemiro and regnitied his war of words with Jamie Carragher in the process.
Casemiro, 33, has largely underwhelmed since arriving at Old Trafford from Real Madrid for £70million in the summer of 2022.
However, in recent weeks the Brazilian has enjoyed an upturn in form, and he has played a crucial role in the Red Devils picking up three successive wins.
Casemiro has established himself as part of Ruben Amorim’s first choice central midfield duo alongside Bruno Fernandes this season, and Ferdinand felt he was back to near his best.
‘He built a stellar career, a five time Champions League-winning career on the back of being the glue, the person that nitted the backline and midfield together and just plugged the gaps,’ Ferdinand told the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast.
‘He wasn’t asked to run all over the place, or be a creator. He was the one who was mopping up and doing all the dirty work and marshalling an area. And recently this is what we’ve seen, we’ve seen something like the old Casemiro.’
Ferdinand went on to reference his spat with Carragher last year when the Liverpool legend had hinted that Casemiro should retire amid his difficult run of form.
‘It takes me back to what was said by Jamie Carragher about “leave the game”,’ Ferdinand added. ‘Which I said at the time I thought it was highly disrespectful when you’re talking about a five-time Champions League winner who is going through maybe a changing approach to football at a time where he looked out of sorts.
‘Players lose confidence, players lose form. But I think the call was too early and it was highly disrespectful for someone that has achieved so much in the game.’
United have only conceded three goals this season with Casemiro on the pitch, and both of Brighton’s on Saturday came after the Brazilian was replaced by Kobbie Mainoo.
And when pressed by his co-host Joel Beya on how the team’s wider struggles may have played into Casemiro’s personal difficulties previously, Ferdinand added: ‘It’s a massive point that sometimes you have to look beyond an individual.
‘We’re very fond of finding a scapegoat, but sometimes you have to look at the way the team is playing and say is that impacting the team negatively or is it the player who has gone?
‘And I think by looking at how the system has been tweaked in the approach and you’re seeing the benefits in someone like Casemiro. This isn’t a 20-game sequence so we’re not going to go too crazy but the games we’ve seen where there’s been an upturn in form (he has had an impact).
‘You don’t win five Champions Leagues without resilience, character and work ethic. Now, he’s the reference point for any player that’s going through a hard time at this football club.’
Meanwhile, Ferdinand’s initial clash with Carragher last year had come in September 2024 after the Liverpudlian targeted Casemiro with a particularly harsh attack.
Carragher blasted the Brazilian midfielder after Liverpool thrashed United 3-0 having previously said of him: ‘Leave the football before the football leaves you – the football has left him.’
Ferdinand could hardly believe his ears and leapt to the defence of the beleaguered Red Devil.
Venting about his counterpart on his podcast, Ferdinand fumed: ‘I heard Jamie Carragher say “leave the football before the football leaves you”, and I just think that’s highly disrespectful.
‘I just think it’s really disrespectful because especially given what my man’s [Casemiro] won, there’s more to it than he’s just made a couple of mistakes.
‘If you look at the two games before Liverpool he’s been arguably Man United’s best player. I think it’s easier to say that he’s gone, he’s finished, he’s too old.
‘I believe when I look at him, he’s being asked to do a lot of things like play 30-yard balls, dictate the pace, these are things Man United would never have recruited him for.
‘He was never asked to do this at Real Madrid. He was cleaning up, security in front, slide tackling, covering all the gaps and then giving it to other people to play football.’
