Five Champions Leagues.
Three La Ligas.
Three Club World Cups.
Three European Super Cups.
Three Spanish Super Cups.
One Copa Del Rey.
There are no two ways about it: Casemiro has won absolutely everything there has been to win during his time as a Real Madrid player. An established international as well, there is also a Copa America title with Brazil boasted within his trophy repertoire from his time at the club.
Since moving to Spain from Sao Paulo (the team that he progressed through the youth system of) in 2013 on an initial loan deal, and after a loan move to Porto for the 2014/15 season, Casemiro developed into nothing but a mainstay in Madrid. He went on to make 336 appearances and cemented himself as a Los Blancos legend, also proving himself as one of the world's best midfielders.
Hereby, departing a team that he has just won the La Liga and Champions League double with, and that he put in a man of the match performance the Super Cup for only two weeks ago, for a Manchester United outfit struggling to stabilise a severe decline may seem rather ludicrous. But Casemiro is driven by challenges. And, frankly, there is nothing more that remains for him to really achieve in Spain.
Many have flagged that he may just be making the switch for financial purposes given superior wages offered by United, but it is unreasonable to begin to suggest that given Casemiro's nature. He can be aptly described as a football-obsessed footballer that would only do what he feels is best for his footballing career.
In fact, Casemiro's commitment extends to the extent that, as he has admitted himself, the first thing that he wants to do after a match is find his statistics and analyse his performance.
Plus, it must be noted that Casemiro has detailed that he would love to play in the Premier League in times gone by, and, while they are currently enduring one of the toughest phases in their history, the name 'Manchester United', in addition to the opportunity to aid their rebuild, is still an attractive prospect. He may be giving up the prospect of Champions League football for a period of time, but that is certainly not indictment of a lack of ambition.
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From United's standpoint, they have certainly pulled themselves an elite holding midfielder - a position that has long required reinforcement. But as well as being a reinforcement in that regard, Casemiro is also a model professional that will add a wealth of experience as well as much-needed leadership qualities that could be invaluable for rectifying an unsettled squad both on and off the pitch.
The mere fact that the club have gone from targeting Adrien Rabiot - hardly a premium option and a player with known attitude issues - to Casemiro in the space of around a week is astounding to contemplate.
As a player, Casemiro no doubt possesses physical and combative attributes that will be well-suited to Premier League football, fitting the mould of a more aggressive, 'destroyer' of a defensive midfielder. He primarily sits deep, is disruptive and breaks up attacks with his tackling capabilities and ability to read space to intercept and recover the ball. In fact, he claimed in an interview with Panenka that "my happiness comes in recovering the ball".
And it is certainly fair to say that Casemiro's understanding of the game is impeccable, with tactical astuteness coming in accordance with his genuine footballing brain, contributing to his exceptional defensive output.
He consistently ranks highly in terms of tackles despite having been playing in a side that have rarely been on the back foot. Since the start of the 2017/18 season, he has made more successful tackles in the league and European competition than any other player in Europe's top five leagues, as per Squawka. Furthermore, via Statman Dave, Casemiro won the most tackles in three of his four Champions League final appearances, including winning eight in 2016 against Atletico Madrid and seven in the victory over Juventus in 2017.
Casemiro doesn't statistically appear an active presser, however this is somewhat an indication of the team that he has played within rather than a lack of trying. When he does opt to press, he is mostly successful. Nobody should be fooled by any sub-par pressing numbers; Casemiro is known to work tirelessly to win the ball back at any given opportunity, hence dominating the area of the pitch - more often than not in his own half - that he tends to favour operating within.
His strength in duels will also be a key feature in a number of regards, with his willingness to contest aerially, along with his success rate in that, likely to prove a defensive asset while also offering a threat from set-pieces. As a matter of fact, Casemiro has actually clocked up a higher goals tally than long-time partners Toni Kroos and Luka Modric despite being the most defensive body in the famous trio.
From his deep vacancy, there is little doubt that Casemiro will add a mass of balance to a midfield that has lacked an outstanding defensive body for a long while. His defensive ability is pivotal in freeing up others to roam, unlocking them to press high where he sometimes doesn't, and giving full-backs a greater license to attack with the knowledge that there is reliable defensive cover.
There is already some evidence that Casemiro could have this sort of effect instantaneously at United given that he has already established a well-functioning partnership with Fred in Brazilian colours. That definitely gives an extra silver-lining to the move.
The defensive ability that Casemiro possesses will likely also provide a shield for a defence short on confidence. In addition to actions such as tackles in the defensive third, Casemiro is renowned for high block tallies, acting very much as an extra line of defence in front of the centre-backs.
It has been an issue at United that the defence have lacked support from midfield with neither Fred nor Scott McTominay offering an dependable defensive presence. And, as well as this, Casemiro's aerial aptitude and general stature could compensate for some of Lisandro Martinez's shortcomings, simultaneously aiding his thus far tricky adaptation.
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On the possessional side of things, there have been many complaints that Casemiro isn't up to the standard of summer-long target Frenkie de Jong. And that is true to an extent given the fact that he is a completely different profile of holding midfielder compared to De Jong, who is very much a deep-lying play-maker. So, in this respect, it will be interesting to see how Ten Hag may adapt given that Casemiro is a different type of midfielder, especially considering that the manager has already seemed keen to use Christian Eriksen in a deeper role ahead of others due to his superior technical prowess.
Another point to make is that Casemiro has operated alongside two of the best ever midfielders from a technical standpoint - Kroos and Modric - in one of the greatest ever midfields (winning 16 trophies across seven seasons together). He has never had to be a primary orchestrator of play.
However, none of this is to understate the fact that Casemiro is perfectly able on the ball. While he doesn't hold much of an attacking presence aside from the occasional goal from a set-piece and the odd long-range effort, Casemiro can be effective in kickstarting moves, ranking relatively highly in ball progression - contrary to misconceptions across fans. Moreover, despite it having not been his main responsibility in Madrid, he is adept at playing passes into the final third, helping transitions.
He is also a reliable figure in possession, not contributing to masses of turnovers despite being highly involved at the base of midfield, emphasising his dependability. Though he is sometimes regarded as being simplistic in his passing, Casemiro actually boasts an exceedingly good long passing ability. In all cases, he is noticeably proficient in playing under pressure from the opposition.
One thing that Casemiro doesn't possess in as much an abundance, however, is a dynamic ball-carrying ability - one of the key things that De Jong would have offered; he doesn't rank particularly well in terms of dribbles and total carrying distance, which includes progressive carries. When Casemiro opts to carry the ball, there are rarely marauding surges that some holding midfielders provide.
It may be the case that United require another midfielder that is more adept at picking the ball up and driving out from deep to accompany Casemiro if Fred is unable to excel in that capacity, with it apparent that Casemiro is more suited to remaining inside his own half and deeper than most midfielders.
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Lots has been made of Casemiro's age, 30 years-old, as a potential factor that acts as a drawback in this move, but that is flawed in many ways.
He is the same age as players such as Son Heung-min and younger than the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Robert Lewandowski and Karim Benzema - all still regarded as being in and around the peak of their careers. And among Premier League midfielders at the present leading two clubs alone, he is younger than all of Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan, Jordan Henderson and Thiago. At United, you only have to look at the output of a 36 and 37 year-old Cristiano Ronaldo last term to see that age is often just a number.
He is also younger than both Kroos (32) and Modric (36), who both still, along with Casemiro himself, performed at a level enough to contribute to winning both La Liga and the Champions League at Real Madrid last season.
It is true that he isn't a young player and won't be a long, long-term option, but the narrative that has developed surrounding Casemiro's age is unnecessary.
The fact that he is departing Madrid isn't an indication that he is starting any sort of dramatic decline. The signing of Aurelien Tchouameni in Casemiro's position appears one contributing factor towards his departure, possibly set to pose a threat towards his playing time. But Tchoumeni's acquisition is more of an opportune move for a talented young player than any desperate search for Casemiro's replacement.
The fact is that Casemiro remains such a high calibre midfielder, near enough at the peak of his powers still and without any real physical ailments, that he is right to chase consistent game-time elsewhere.
After all, Madrid fans would not be mourning his departure if he wasn't still a valuable asset to one of the world's best teams. The reaction of a fanbase is always an excellent indication of the sort of player you are getting. And those of Madrid are devastated at Casemiro's move away.
When all is said and done, even with Casemiro in his thirties, a fee of reportedly around £60million can be deemed respectable given that the club seem to belief he could offer up to five years of service (given the four-plus-one year contract).
Maybe it is a move that somewhat undermines Ten Hag given that there has been a summer-long pursuit of a more ball-playing oriented holding midfielder at his request, showing a lack of much contingency planning. But, regardless, Casemiro will be beyond an upgrade on the current personnel and should be a character and player that has the ability to try and hold a struggling team together.
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