“I still believe that” – Graeme Souness sticks by controversial Man Utd opinion despite criticism

Graeme Souness still believes his assessment of Manchester United midfielder Casemiro being a ‘steady Eddie’ correct despite his impressive debut campaign at Old Trafford.

Souness, 70, was not convinced by the move from United to bring in the five-time winner of the Champions League from Real Madrid last summer.

Speaking to talkSPORT shortly after the move was complete, the former Liverpool player said: “He was playing with great players. He’s not a great player. He has never been a great player.

“I see him as a steady Eddie who will help United be more solid in midfield. I don’t think he has got a great range of passing. I don’t think he is going help other people play.

“I think he was lucky to be in that Real Madrid team. I never look forward to watching Casemiro. [Karim] Benzema, definitely. The other midfield players, definitely. I never thought, ‘I’m really excited to watch Casemiro play today’.”

This opinion brought upon much criticism for the pundit, especially after the Brazilian started playing for the English club.

Casemiro was arguably United’s most important player across the 2022/23 campaign and when he was not in the team, they suffered as a result.

The midfielder not only helped drastically improve the defence, but he also regularly came up with contributions at the other end of the pitch, including a goal in the Carabao Cup final as United won their first piece of silverware in six years.

Only Marcus Rashford and Bruno Fernandes had more goals and assists for The Reds last term, but still, Souness believes that he was correct in his assessment last summer.

Speaking on talkSPORT on Tuesday, he was questioned on calling Casemiro a ‘steady Eddie’.

“I still believe that,” he replied. “He’s a good player, [but] you’d never describe him as a great player.”