Manchester United are facing the possibility of losing Casemiro for one game with the Brazilian collecting his fourth yellow card of the season against Everton on Monday
Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim
Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim could be facing a nightmare scenario
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Ruben Amorim is facing a nightmare scenario if Casemiro is booked for the fifth time this season. The Manchester United midfielder is walking a suspension tightrope after picking up his fourth yellow card of the campaign during Monday's 1-0 defeat against Everton.
Should Casemiro receive one more caution between now and United's 19th Premier League fixture, he will serve a one-game ban. If the Brazil international does therefore pick up that yellow card and get a suspension, Amorim is poised to have a huge selection dilemma on his plate.
This is because Manuel Ugarte, Casemiro's direct replacement, isn't fancied by Amorim right now. Indeed, Ugarte has played just 346 minutes across ten appearances (seven from the bench) in all competitions this season. The Uruguay international last started in the 3-1 defeat at Brentford in September.
Casemiro has been United's first-choice No.6 for some time with Ugarte having to settle for a back-up role and Kobbie Mainoo acting as competition for Bruno Fernandes instead.
With the players he has available, Amorim has found his midfield partnership and a ban for Casemiro would cause him a nightmare situation, especially as Ugarte has not been used much.
Speaking in the build-up to his side's game against Everton, Amorim spoke in-depth about Ugarte and challenged him to training amid worries about his performances for the Reds.
Manuel Ugarte
Man United's Manuel Ugarte has struggled for regular game time this season
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When asked if he was surprised by Ugarte's form at Old Trafford, Amorim said: "No, I understand. If, again.. you are here [Manchester] longer than me, and you can sense that a lot of very good players come here, and sometimes they struggle.
"And they are struggling, he is struggling in the moment. But it is our job to try to help our players, and again, everything can change. And you saw it five weeks ago, the environment was completely different.
"So I know that Ugarte is struggling in the moment and my job is trying to help him to feel as a player, like I felt when he was a Sporting player, for example. But it is a different world and he needs to adapt and he needs to improve, especially in training."
Ugarte and Amorim worked together at Sporting CP before the Uruguay midfielder decided to leave for Paris Saint-Germain in a deal worth £51m in June 2023. However, he struggled at the Parc des Princes and departed after just over a year at the club, signing for United in August 2024.
He made an instant impact under Erik ten Hag but started to struggle as the season wore on, with Casemiro displacing him near the end of last campaign with Amorim opting to make a change. This season, Ugarte has started just twice in the Premier League against Manchester City and Brentford.