It was a dramatic night at Old Trafford on Saturday as Manchester United defeated Chelsea 2-1.
With the rain beating down hard, Ruben Amorim’s team did well to grab a well-earned win, putting their embarrassing 3-0 loss to Manchester City the previous week well behind them.
United dominated the first half, and while it was the visitors who controlled possession for most of the second half, the hosts were more dangerous in front of goal throughout.
After all, United took 11 shots with four on target, with Chelsea only managing four attempts with one on target.
There were several standout players on the night, not the least of whom was Casemiro.
Still, the match wasn’t wholly positive for the Brazilian.
The good
Most notably, Casemiro scored United’s second goal, getting on the end of a Harry Maguire header to bury the ball in the back of the net from close range.
He almost scored with a header a few minutes before that, only for the officials to determine that Amad Diallo, who crossed the ball to him, actually dragged the ball out of play.
In addition to these pivotal moments, Casemiro took just one other shot that happened to be on target.
With 20 of his 22 passes reaching their mark, Casemiro registered an impressive 91% passing accuracy.
Sadly, his positive performance would be cut short.
Casemiro’s downfall
Only two of his four long balls reached their mark. Furthermore, he failed to win any of his three ground duels. Still, these statistics were not the worst part of Casemiro’s night.
Back in the 17th minute, Casemiro was booked for a foul for a late challenge on Enzo Fernandez.
While he seemed to be playing cautiously from then on, the Brazilian would be lured into a costly tackle five minutes into first-half stoppage time. Although his challenge on Andrey Santos seemed light, the referee showed no leeway, giving him his second yellow card which resulted in him being sent off.
Despite his shortfalls, Casemiro showed great vision, particularly in front of goal. Had he been able to see out the remainder of the match, there’s no telling how many more goals he could have helped United to score.
(Stats via Sofascore)
Featured image Alex Livesey via Getty Images
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Mathew Cohen
A faithful Manchester United supporter, Mathew has worked as a football writer and analyst for SB Nation, FanSided, and now The Peoples Person. Mathew’s heroes include David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Sir Alex Ferguson, all of whom played their part in creating some special childhood memories.
