Casemiro: United's 60-minute man

Not long ago many were writing off midfielder Casemiro for his poor form while manager Ruben Amorim didn't seem to fancy him. That was until the Brazilian turned it around and became an essential part of Manchester United 's improved season.

Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher 's quote about Casemiro 'leave the football before the football leaves you' is looking increasingly premature.

There was a reason to believe that at the time though, Erik ten Hag 's United were struggling and Casemiro often looked out at sea with youngster Toby Collyer moving ahead of him in the pecking order.

At first, Ruben Amorim seemed to agree but eventually serial-winner Casemiro forced himself back into the squad and became indispensable.

Casemiro's season so far has been made up of impressive cameos before being taken off at around about the hour mark.

On average, when Casemiro is taken off it's on the 66th minute often replaced by Manuel Ugarte for the remainder. Last time out against Brighton, it was Kobbie Mainoo who came on and United looked suddenly very open until Ugarte's introduction.

So, what does Casemiro's hour usually look like? Surprisingly productive, it seems.

Perhaps what is helping Casemiro is that unlike during his time in Ten Hag's midfield, he has less running to make and a smaller area to cover as the team is more compact.

Indeed, Casemiro is yet to make a single progressive 10-yard carry in the league this season. In comparison, the Ugarte has four and Mainoo has five despite playing far fewer games. Casemiro's midfield partner Bruno Fernandes is on 14 as he is given more freedom to roam.

Only three United players have attempted more tackles (15) than Casemiro – Patrick Dorgu , Luke Shaw , and Fernandes. While no one has made more blocks for the team, here the midfielder ties with defender Matthijs de Ligt on 10 in total.

Overall, the team are better off when he's on the field. During Casemiro's minutes United have a total of +7 goals when you take away goals conceded from goals scored for the time when the Brazilian is on the pitch.

This is remarkably high. Let's use captain Fernandes as a baseline here as he's (usually) on the pitch. With Fernandes that number is just +1, which is not a reflection of Fernandes' overall contribution but a more measured average for United in general but it's Casemiro who always seems to be around when things are going well.