Manchester United legend Dimitar Berbatov has asked Casemiro to pull up his socks, claiming the Brazilian has been below par this season.

Five-time UEFA Champions League winner Casemiro joined the Red Devils from Real Madrid last summer. He emerged as one of the key cogs in Erik ten Hag’s machine in the 2022-23 season, pitching in with decisive performances over the course of the campaign.

Berbatov urges Manchester United star Casemiro to regain his form

The 31-year-old has started in both of Manchester United’s Premier League games this season but failed to live up to his sky-high standards. Speaking to Betfair, Berbatov talked about Casemiro’s recent performances, asking him to get back to his best as soon as possible.

The Bulgarian legend said:

“Casemiro needs to do better, based on the standards that he has shown over several years at Real Madrid and last season at United. The standards he has set for himself are really high.

“In the first couple of games, Casemiro has not played at the standards that we saw of him. I’m sure that he knows it. The team are not playing as well as everybody expected them to play and if they don’t wake up, the season will be gone and it will be another wasted year.”

Casemiro failed to cope with Tottenham Hotspur’s midfield in Premier League defeat

At his best, Casemiro is a force to be reckoned with. He uses his game-reading to intercept passes and inch-perfect tackling to take the ball away from crafty opponents. Neither trait was on show in United’s 2-0 defeat to Spurs last Saturday (August 19). He was easily brushed aside by James Maddison and Co. and his distribution was spotty at best.

Over the course of the game, Casemiro attempted four long balls, only one of which reached their destination. He was also dribbled past twice and lost five of nine aerial duels. He was pretty adventurous on the ball and attempted as many as five shots, but only two were on the money.

The Brazilian defensive midfielder will look to fare a lot better when he returns to Premier League action against Nottingham Forest on Saturday (August 26).