Erling Haaland leads in outstanding stats like goals but Casemiro makes a big difference to Manchester United’s play.

Haaland has almost acquired the most important individual titles in English football this season. The Norwegian spearhead went down in history when he won the Player of the Season award, the Best Young Player award by the Premier League BTC, and the best player award voted by the Football Journalists Association (FWA). Goals in football are always a prominent factor and are the easiest measure for experts or fans to judge a player.

However, in terms of the influence on the play and results of a team, Haaland is not sure better than Casemiro.

Difference

“The Casemiro deal to Old Trafford is as important as Erik ten Hag signing for this club,” commented BBC expert Garth Crooks. “The arrival of the Brazilian midfielder has completely changed Manchester United this season, on and off the pitch. Casemiro is the best signing of the season.”

Gary Neville also agrees with this view. The former MU defender thinks that Haaland is excellent, but has not made a big enough impact to completely change the way Man City plays.

“The imprint Casemiro brought to MU far exceeded other rookies, including Haaland,” commented Neville. “Casemiro may not be the best player of the season, but the signing that makes the biggest change for a team.”

Haaland scored 36 goals in the 2022/23 Premier League and easily surpassed his opponents to receive the title of Top scorer in the tournament. However, without the Norwegian striker, can Man City win the English championship?

Pep Guardiola’s team has won the Premier League 4 times before. This season, many times they overcame strong opponents without Haaland’s goals. Man City’s system is too complete and the striker 𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 in 2000 is just a piece of the puzzle to improve scoring performance.

Casemiro’s background at MU is completely different from Haaland’s. Before the Brazilian midfielder arrived, the Old Trafford team finished 6th in the English Premier League 2021/22. The “Red Devils” then possessed a weak midfield, especially in the defensive midfield position. Casemiro’s presence changes everything. The former Real Madrid star does almost everything in the middle of MU, from holding the rhythm, tackling the ball, and rotating the ball to creating or scoring goals.

Seven goals and seven assists in 52 appearances this season for MU in all competitions do not understate the influence of Casemiro. It just shows that when it comes to attacking, Casemiro does well too. Off the field, the 1992 midfielder was also praised for bringing experience and composure to the MU dressing room.

Haaland is playing in a strong team

“He (Casemiro) is like a coach playing on the pitch,” commented Gary Neville. “Casemiro gives instructions to his teammates, using his experience to help the team.”

Ten Hag also affirmed that Casemiro’s influence on MU did not stop at the tackles or passes. “Casemiro surprised me,” the MU captain once admitted late last year.

In matches where Casemiro was suspended or did not play, MU struggled to play. The central midfield position has always been a big problem for the Old Trafford team since Paul Scholes retired.

The same problem also appears at Man City in the central position. Pep’s team lacked a spearhead that knew how to put the ball in the net over the past few years.

However, Man City beat Liverpool 4-1 this season without Haaland in the starting XI (due to injury). When Man City thrashed Real Madrid 4-0 in the second leg of the Champions League semi-final, Haaland also failed to score. That shows that Pep creates a system that is not too dependent on the goals of the Dutch spearhead.

The satellites around Haaland in Man City are clearly of quality compared to Casemiro at MU. The “Red Devils” are still in the process of rebuilding the team under Ten Hag after years of instability. In contrast, Man City’s system is almost reaching its peak in the 7th season led by Pep. Therefore, Haaland can collect individual awards thanks to goals and collective titles, but in terms of influence on a team, he is difficult to compare with Casemiro.

The concept is that the best signing of the season has to be the rookies who make a big difference to the team, and Casemiro deserves it.