Manchester United had to be content with a draw from their Europa League Round of 16 first-leg tie against Real Sociedad with the game ending 1-1 at the Reale Arena on Thursday.
It was Joshua Zirkzee who handed the visitors the lead and the Red Devils were comfortably in charge of the game, creating chances at regular intervals.
However, their profligacy in front of goal meant the home side remained alive in the contest and they sucker punched United in the 70th minute through a dubious penalty call that should never have stood.
They were toothless until the goal and the fact that they are currently ninth in the La Liga standings showed with the Txuri-Urdin playing the game at a leisurely pace.
Slow nature of the game suited Casemiro
And it suited Casemiro, who started in the absence of Manuel Ugarte in the middle of the park. Usually, the Brazilian has struggled to deal with the intensity of the English game but he was imperious on his return to Spain.
For the goal, it was his quick thinking and passing that allowed Diogo Dalot to find Alejandro Garnacho in space out wide whose pass was expertly finished by Zirkzee.
The slow nature of the game suited him with the 33-year-old enjoying 62 touches of the ball and completing 31 out of 38 passes. He also found a teammate with five long balls attempts.
Defensively, he was solid, winning five tackles, most among his teammates, while also winning six out of nine ground duels and two aerial duels.
Contender to start the second leg as well
He dropped deep to help out the backline at every opportunity, making two clearances, blocking two attempts as well as completing two interceptions (all stats via sofascore).
Injuries have opened the door for a re-entry into the head coach’s thoughts and the former Real Madrid superstar has grabbed the chance with two back-to-back impressive displays.
He was solid against Fulham in the FA Cup as well. After managing four starts in 2024 under the Portuguese, he has now started another three games in the space of a couple of weeks.
Whether Amorim will trust him against Arsenal remains to be seen but the five-time Champions League winner is definitely a candidate to start the return leg at Old Trafford.
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Ayantan Chowdhury
Ayantan has worked for 10 years in the Indian sports media industry, writing for the biggest newspapers and websites but his heart was always set on writing about his favourite club. Currently an editor at The Peoples Person. You can follow him on X: @ayantanc_25
