“I’ve been there…” Roy Keane launches surprise defence of Manchester United star

Roy Keane has launched a surprise defence of one of Manchester United’s current stars following a poor start to the season under Erik ten Hag.

After an opening-day victory over Fulham in the Premier League, Manchester United have slipped to 11th in the table, with fans disappointed over the performances of some of the players.

Erik ten Hag‘s losses against Brighton and Liverpool compounded this, with many of the club’s stars drawing criticism for lacklustre displays that have failed to live up to expectations so far.

Read More: Fabrizio Romano reveals why Manchester United rejected late Antony transfer approach

One of those who has been heavily criticised is Casemiro, who was at fault for Luis Diaz’s two first-half goals for Liverpool.

However, in the recent episode of Stick to Football, former United midfielder Roy Keane launched a slightly surprising defence of Casemiro, explaining that fans cannot write off players at the age of 32.

“He’ll definitely be here until January. The one thing I would say… he had a difficult first half, obviously, but he played in the Community Shield, done okay, played against Fulham, done okay.

“I wouldn’t be writing players off at that age. We’re saying 31, 32… what happens, I’ve been there, when you get to that age and he had an unbelievably poor game which he did in the first half… everyone’s quick, as if none of us had a bad game when we were twenty two.

“Maybe his role in the team if he gets back in, gets a couple of games under his belt, might be higher up the pitch.

“The first thing we always say is that he can’t get around the pitch but when you see him going forward he does have an eye for a pass and set-pieces, how many times do you see him get his head on it?

“Will Casemiro get Man United back to competing with Man City? Of course not. But the deal is done, he’s at the club.”

Casemiro has been heavily linked with a move away from United of late, with Turkish club Galatasaray reportedly launching an ambitious effort to sign the player on loan.

However, with the Brazilian on around £350k a week, United have so far struggled to find suitors to offload him, and recent reports suggest that he would only choose to leave if he was to be informed that he is no longer part of Ten Hag’s plans.

Make sure to follow UtdDistrict on X, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok to never miss out on any of our Manchester United content. Our podcast, What the Devil?, is released every Thursday at 6 pm (BST) on the United View YouTube channel.