Real Madrid dressing room believes Casemiro's departure to Manchester United was a 'fatal error' from Florentino Perez: Reports

Real Madrid's dressing room and coaching staff believe club president Florentino Perez made a blunder by selling Casemiro to Manchester United last summer, Catalan outlet El Nacional has reported. It has been claimed that they miss Casemiro’s consistent displays and the leadership he provided off the pitch.

Under Perez, Real Madrid have been uncompromising when it comes to their transfer policy. They have unhesitantly sold players who do not wish to remain at the club and have brought in promising young footballers as replacements.

Similar to Cristiano Ronaldo’s transfer to Juventus, Los Blancos shook the world last summer by shipping Casemiro off to Manchester United in an €80 million deal. Days before the Brazilian’s transfer, the club purchased highly rated young defensive midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni for a similar fee, who was a like-for-like replacement for Casemiro.

While swapping Casemiro for a younger player was seen as a positive move at the time, the perception has reportedly changed over the course of the season. It is believed that Perez may have overlooked the inevitable adaptation period every newcomer goes through, which can significantly hurt their output.

Tchouameni, 23, has tapered off following a positive start to life at Real Madrid. Once a regular, the France international has recently struggled for minutes under Carlo Ancelotti, with the Italian often picking Eduardo Camavinga ahead of him.

Casemiro, 31, on the other hand, has emerged as one of Manchester United’s best players, winning his place under Erik ten Hag following a difficult start in England. Casemiro also scored the opening goal in Manchester United’s 2-0 EFL Cup final win over Newcastle United on February 26.

Casemiro has played 35 games for Manchester United this season, scoring five times and providing five assists.

---

Carlo Ancelotti admits that catching Barcelona will be difficult for Real Madrid in La Liga

Hours after Barcelona picked up a narrow 1-0 victory over Valencia, Los Merengues were held to a goalless draw by Real Betis away from home. It was Madrid’s second consecutive draw in La Liga after drawing 1-1 with Atletico Madrid in their previous league match.

Following Barca’s win and their draw, Madrid find themselves nine points adrift of the Blaugrana in the La Liga race.

Speaking to the press after the game, coach Carlo Ancelotti admitted that Barcelona’s lead over his team was significant but refused to throw in the towel.

When asked whether or not Real Madrid were out of the title race, Ancelotti said (via Managing Madrid):

“No, no. The gap is big. We'll work this week, we have a whole week to work. We need to keep fighting until the end. There are lots of games to be played but we need to improve.”

Ancelotti’s side will return to action with a clash against Espanyol on Saturday afternoon (March 11).