Casemiro

Carlos Henrique Casimiro (born 23 February 1992), also known mononymously as Casemiro [ka.zeˈmi.ɾu], is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Premier League club Manchester United and the Brazil national team.

Casemiro began his career with São Paulo and progressed through the ranks. He scored 11 goals in 111 games as a midfielder for the club. His defensive abilities caught the attention of Real Madrid, and he joined the club on loan in January 2013. He played 15 games for Real Madrid Castilla during his loan spell. Afterward, he was signed permanently by Real Madrid for a fee of £5.1 million, becoming a part of their first-team squad at the Santiago Bernabéu.

After joining Real Madrid, Casemiro initially struggled to break into the first team. He was loaned to FC Porto for €15 million to gain more playing time. During his time at Porto, Casemiro performed impressively and helped the team reach the Champions League quarterfinals. Real Madrid decided to reacquire him for €7.00m in the summer transfer window of 2015. After returning to the club, Casemiro played a crucial role in Real Madrid's success, becoming one of the best defensive midfielders in the world, and winning numerous trophies including three La Liga titles, three Supercopa de España, three FIFA Club World Cups, three UEFA Super Cups, one Copa del Rey and five UEFA Champions Leagues. In 2022, he left Real Madrid and joined Manchester United for a transfer worth a reported €70.65m, winning the EFL Cup in his first season and the FA Cup the following season.

A full international since 2011, Casemiro was in Brazil's squad at the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups as well as four Copa América tournaments, winning the 2019 Copa América and finishing as a runner-up in 2021.

Born in São José dos Campos, São Paulo, Casemiro was a product of São Paulo FC's youth system. From the age of 11 upwards, he acted as captain to its sides; he was known as "Carlão" – an augmentative form of his first name in Portuguese – early on, and would be called up for the 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup.

Casemiro made his Série A debut on 25 July 2010, in an away loss against Santos. He scored his first goal as a professional on 15 August, helping to a 2–2 draw with Cruzeiro.

On 7 April 2012, Casemiro scored the first goal of a 2–0 win over Mogi Mirim at the Arena Barueri in that year's Campeonato Paulista after replacing the injured Fabrício early on, but was later sent off. São Paulo also won the Copa Sudamericana, with the player making one substitute appearance in a 5–0 home success against Universidad de Chile in the quarter-final second leg on 7 November.

On 31 January 2013, Casemiro was loaned to Real Madrid in Spain, being assigned to the B-team in Segunda División. He played his first game in the competition on 16 February, starting in a 1–3 defeat at Sabadell. Casemiro made his La Liga debut on 20 April, playing the full 90 minutes in a 3–1 home win over Real Betis. On 2 June, he scored his first goal in Europe, opening the reserves' 4–0 win over Alcorcón at the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium. Eight days after his first goal for Real Madrid Castilla, the move was made permanent for four years and a fee of R$18.738 million was paid.