Man City crashed out of the Champions League on Tuesday night as two Manchester United targets took to the pitch for Real Madrid, including Aurelien Tchouameni and Eduardo Camavinga.
Manchester United have been tasked with replacing Casemiro in the summer following an announcement in January that the Brazilian veteran would be leaving Old Trafford at the end of the season.
Although Casemiro won everything at Real Madrid, including five Champions League triumphs, his strong bond with United fans is on another level. The Stretford End sang about wanting him to stay another year, even though it’s been decided that he will leave ahead of the World Cup.
United have been linked with an array of potential Casemiro replacements, including Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson. Last week, United were linked with Real Madrid duo Aurelien Tchouameni and Eduardo Camavinga, but tonight we watched them closely as they both played against Man City in the Champions League.
Aurelien Tchouameni playing against Man City
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Aurelien Tchouameni stats vs Man City
Real Madrid went into the second leg of their last-16 tie against Man City with a three-goal advantage.
The first leg was dominated by Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde, but tonight our focus was on two other Los Blancos stars Tchouameni and Camavinga.
United are unlikely to replace Casemiro in the same way as Madrid, by signing both Tchouameni and Camavinga, but if they were to sell one of those players this summer, who would be best suited to the role that needs to be fulfilled at Old Trafford?
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I have already written about Camavinga’s versatility and ability to play at left back. On Tuesday night, he was named on the bench, while Tchouameni was Real Madrid’s anchor in midfield from the start.
The first half was an open affair with City creating multiple opportunities on goal. Vinicius Jr opened the scoring from the penalty spot after 22 minutes, following Bernardo Silva’s red card, before Erling Haaland equalised just minutes before the half-time whistle.
Tchouameni gave a good account of himself in the centre of the pitch, with Madrid holding a three-goal advantage over the last-16 tie. He had a 100% pass success rate (20/20) and one shot on target at half-time, breaking up play and ensuring that his teammates transitioned quickly.
Before the 70th-minute mark, Tchouameni showed his aerial threat with a header that was denied by City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma. It was the first time the Italian denied the Frenchman.
The 26-year-old finished the game with a 94% pass success rate (45/48), but he created a total of two chances and touched the ball 63 times.
Seven of Tchouameni’s passes made their way into the final third and he wasn’t dispossessed once.
He made a total of eight defensive contributions, including four tackles on a busy night for Madrid’s midfield.
Vinicius completed a brace in stoppage time to make it 2-1 on the night.
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Jadon Sancho in action for Manchester United vs Manchester City.
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Eduardo Camavinga makes substitute cameo
Camavinga was introduced with 73 minutes on the clock. The French star wasted no time getting on the ball by trying to help Real Madrid maintain possession, alongside Tchouameni and Valverde.
It is perhaps telling that Camavinga is now starting in Real Madrid’s most important matches (he was a substitute in the first leg, too) because he would walk into United’s line-up.
He only misplaced one of his 16 passes in a 16-minute cameo, touching the ball 19 times and making two defensive contributions.
Camavinga didn’t get enough time on the pitch to have a real impact on the game, but Madrid got the job done by knocking City out of Europe.
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