Casemiro aimed a thinly veiled jibe at former Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim in picking out one Red Devils star who “is the present and the future” of the club.
Amorim was sacked in January after just over a year of heavy criticism at the Old Trafford helm, in which he won just 25 of his 63 games in charge.
Interim replacement Michael Carrick has turned the tide in dramatic fashion since replacing the Portuguese boss, winning seven and losing just one of his ten games in charge to push United into third in the Premier League table, well set to qualify for the Champions League next term.
One of the major beneficiaries of the managerial switch has been Kobbie Mainoo, who – after featuring for all but 14 minutes under Carrick – has now incredibly started just two fewer Premier League games under the current boss than in 14 months under Amorim.
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And Casemiro, who’s started each of those ten games alongside Mainoo, has thrown shade at Amorim over his decision to oust the England international from his starting lineup, claiming the 20-year-old is “one of the best” in his position and can be “for the next 12 years”.
“Kobbie is the present and the future,” Casemiro said in a Q&A with United.
“I think that he is one of the best No.8s and can be for that for the next 12 years.
“He is a player I really like. He always wants the ball. It is true that football can’t change your mentality but Kobbie demonstrated that he hasn’t changed his focus once.
“He has to continue focusing like he is now and continue playing the important role he is now. But what a player he is, he is a great player.
“He has demonstrated this, in the Euros final with England, he has demonstrated it in finals, he scored in the FA Cup [in the 2024 final win against Manchester City].
“Kobbie is the present and the future.”
Carrick recently claimed it “wasn’t a big decision” to play Mainoo as he’s “got huge talent”.
He told BBC Sport: “I’ve known Kobbie a long time. I started working with him when I think he was 13 or 14, when I was starting to do my coaching badges – a good few years ago. Just little bits. And then, obviously, when I was here the first time, he was in and around a little bit.
“So I think knowing him and having experience with him and seeing him perform at such a level on such big occasions… I said earlier about coaches being able to cope with being here and at the level to deal with it. What Kobbie’s done at such a young age is quite incredible really.
“We forget how young he still is. I was just a big fan of watching him play and knowing what he was capable of. So it wasn’t really a big decision to play him. And, to be fair, it’s not easy when you haven’t played to find your rhythm and find your form.
“There are things he can get better at, things he can improve on, but we haven’t really got started on any of that because we’re just letting him go and find his flow and find his rhythm of playing football again. I’ve been really conscious of not giving him an awful lot – a couple of little pointers, a bit of positional things and some little bits here and there – but trust in what he is. He’s a fantastic footballer and he’s got a huge talent.”
