Casemiro has admitted he had doubts about leaving Real Madrid to join Manchester United after seeing Carlo Ancelotti cry.
United signed Casemiro from Real in the summer of 2022 after agreeing to pay up to £70million for the Brazil international. The transfer was considered something of a coup for United at the time, given Casemiro’s wealth of experience and success in Spain, and they handed him a lucrative four-year contract with the option of a further 12 months.
He was an integral part of Ancelotti’s side, having helped Real lift five Champions League trophies and win three La Liga titles. But the deal made sense for Real, who had already signed Aurelien Tchouameni that summer and also had Eduardo Camavinga on the books as a potential replacement.
Yet the parting of ways was still difficult for both parties and Casemiro felt an emotional wrench when he spoke to Ancelotti about it. “I remember it was a Friday, and almost everything was done, the only thing that was missing was my signature, and I just had to do my medical, but it was already done,” he told El Chiringuito de Jugones.
“I went to talk to the Mister because I was supposed to train, but I couldn’t train [because the transfer was imminent]. People knew the transfer was done, but I still had to be there. And so I go to talk to Ancelotti and he already knew I was leaving. I entered his office, and when he turned around, I saw he was crying. Ancelotti was crying.
“And I am thinking, ‘Why are you crying? No, you can’t be crying.’ And Carlo told me that he didn’t want me to leave and that he loved me very much… and in that moment I doubted [the move] and realised how many people loved me here. But I had already committed to it; I had given my word, and my word is more important than anything. But that was the one moment.”
Casemiro enjoyed a decent first season with United, making a huge impression in central midfield and winning the Carabao Cup. But his performances have tailed off dramatically in the 2023/24 campaign, leaving some – including Sir Jim Ratcliffe – to question the wisdom of investing so much money in him.
Having grown so accustomed to winning at Real, Casemiro has found it hard to adapt at United, who are currently in seventh place in the Premier League, 23 points behind their rivals Manchester City at the top. “It’s difficult,” the 32-year-old recently told ESPN Brazil. “This is the point that bothers me most about not fighting for titles. Being 20 points behind first place.
“Sometimes, I can’t even sleep to try to think about doing something different. It’s reality. There’s no point in thinking about title or Champions League places, we need to think about today’s games.”
