What Erik ten Hag asked Fred before Man United kick-off vs Tottenham and how Casemiro impressed

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag lavished praise on midfielders Casemiro and Fred after their 2-0 win over Tottenham.

Fred produced arguably the zenith of his Old Trafford career with a complete performance, scoring United’s first goal and having a key role in Bruno Fernandes’s clincher.

The Brazilian was a surprise starter with Scott McTominay back from suspension and Christian Eriksen on the bench after he struggled in the goalless draw with Newcastle on Sunday.

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However, Fred and Brazil teammate Casemiro dominated Tottenham’s midfield trio of Pierre-Emile Højbjerg, Yves Bissouma and Rodrigo Bentancur.

“Yes, definitely,” Ten Hag replied when it was suggested Fred had met expectations. “The demands are high and I asked him before the game, ‘are you ready?’ And he said, ‘I am always ready’. And he showed today.”

Casemiro has started the last five games and arrived to much fanfare in a £70million transfer from Real Madrid in August.

The five-times Champions League winner starts alongside Fred regularly for Brazil and the pair could line up together at the World Cup.

“It’s definitely a link between [Fred and Casemiro], that’s clear,” Ten Hag noted. “And Casemiro is now settled in, you see also developing.

“You see why we signed him, he’s growing from game to game and you see how important a player like he is for the squad and it was a magnificent performance.

“And this team, this club, needed a player like him. He showed in the last games what he can do for the team.”

“Sometimes, call it the form of the day, but today we were good in many elements of football against a tough opponent, a really solid Spurs and it’s difficult to create chances against them and we did, so I’m happy with that.

“I hope you understand how we have to break such opponents and there were a lot of elements I was really happy with today.”

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