Casemiro claims season has been 'successful' despite Man Utd misery
Casemiro has surprisingly deemed this season one of his "most successful" after earning the trust of Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim, despite a challenging period for the team. The Brazilian midfielder appeared to be on his way out of Old Trafford in January, after talks of a move to Saudi Arabia were bandied about last summer and re-emerged during the winter window.
Yet when the dust settled, Casemiro remained with United. After initially falling out of Portuguese coach Amorim's favour, by around February he began to carve out more regular playing time in the Premier League and European competitions.
The 33-year-old became integral to the squad that battled its way to the Europa League final, noticing an uptick in appearances as the season drew to a close.
Casemiro, while on duty with the Brazil national team, has now shed light on discussions held with Amorim earlier in his tenure, boldly stating that, for him, personally, it was indeed a successful year.
"This year has been one of the most important years of my career, if not the most. Even because of the coach's choice [Ruben Amorim]. I was left out [of the options], but I never stopped working," Casemiro revealed.
"That's my great success. Everyone wants to talk about titles, victories and big games, but when you don't play and you manage to change the mind of a coach who arrives and doesn't play you.
"You end up coming back, and now you're being praised by the coach who at first practically didn't count on you... it was one of my most successful years.
"These are things that end up happening internally. I'm one of those people who, when things happen internally, I don't like to say too much."
Despite United's struggles, Casemiro donned the Red Devils' kit 42 times this term, netting five times and contributing three assists.
His personal comeback stands in stark contrast to United's disappointing campaign, which saw them lumber to their lowest Premier League ranking in history, finishing 15th, and suffering 14 defeats, a figure not seen since 1990.
The Brazilian midfielder faced severe criticism in September following a harrowing first-half display against Liverpool, where his error led to Luis Diaz opening the scoring after just 35 minutes. Not long after, Casemiro lost possession again, allowing Diaz to score once more before Erik ten Hag subbed him off at the break, with United eventual 3-0 losers.
Casemiro shed light on his discussions with his manager during challenging times, stating (via the Manchester Evening News): "I don't think there's been such a big relapse in my individual aspect, but when the club isn't playing well, changes are needed.
"I spoke to him [Amorim] and he told me that it was more a question of choosing to play, that I should wait for the opportunity. Of course, he was open with me.
"He said it was his choice, nothing against me. I had no choice but to carry on working and wait for the opportunity. When I played, I lived up to what he asked."
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