04 October 2023 , 23:47
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Galatasaray manager Okan Buruk admits he told his players to target Casemiro during their shock win over Manchester United.
The Turkish side landed a memorable success at Old Trafford as they twice came from behind to eventually pick up the three points. United's struggles continued in the Champions League as they lost at home for the second time in four days with Casemiro's difficulties summing up his side's season thus far.
The Brazilian, signed from Real Madrid last summer, was a standout in his debut campaign but hasn't been able to have the same impact with questions already being asked about his age and stamina in the middle of the pitch. Buruk gave his players clear instruction to double up on the United man, which paid dividends.
He said: "We wanted to put pressure on Casemiro in the midfield with (Lucas) Torreira. Kaan (Ayhan) is a player who plays well defensively and without the ball. We wanted to use both together. I think Kaan performed a very important task. He gave support."
Casemiro had a night to forget as he was given his marching orders in the second-half after scything down Dries Mertens when he was through on the goalkeeper, who had made a catastrophic error when trying to play out, giving the ball away.
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Eventually it was Mauro Icardi, who missed an earlier penalty, that came up with the winner, owing to some poor defending. He was able to chip the ball over Andre Onana, who also copped criticism for going down too early as the Argentine ran through on goal.
Casemiro was sent-off in Tuesday night's defeat (Matt West/REX/Shutterstock)Buruk even felt that his team missed out on the chance to score more goals, which would've made the game safe, but hailed their historic success in Manchester. He told Exxen: "After scoring the third goal, our opponent took risks. This gave us opportunities to score a fourth, but we could not take advantage of them."
He added: "It was a very good match. Our goal is to get out of the group. We got an important victory here, a 3-2 win that will be remembered for many years."
Erik ten Hag meanwhile was forced to face more questions about his underperforming side with a host of Casemiro's team-mates also failing to hit the heights necessary. He said: “In the end, the fans are disappointed as we are. We are also very disappointed.
“But that also has to be fuel and that is the good thing about this team. Every time they find the energy in every game, at the start of every game. There was a team with a lot of energy and with a good motivation going into the game.”