Fred reveals Casemiro was interested in joining Man Utd 'months' before summer transfer
Manchester United midfielder Fred has revealed he spoke to international teammate Casemiro about joining the club several months before the move actually happened.
The Casemiro deal, worth £70m in total including add-ons, came across rather opportunistic and seemed to appear out of nowhere in the second half of August. But Fred has suggested it was in the pipeline for some time before it actually happened.
"I found out long before both clubs announced it. A few months before, we had already spoken, he and I,” Fred has told TNT Sports Brasil.
“We had a nice conversation, Casemiro asked me how I was here, I explained everything to him.”
Casemiro was seeking a new challenge when he opted to leave Real Madrid after spending nine years and winning five Champions League title in the Spanish capital.
Listen now to 90min's Manchester United podcast, The Promised Land, with Scott Saunders & Rob Blanchette. In the latest episode they discuss the recent win over Real Sociedad, the upcoming Aston Villa clash and the club's interest in Benfica star Enzo Fernandez.
New manager Erik ten Hag took over at United in May, moving straight over from Ajax to start work on the Old Trafford’s fourth rebuilding job in the space of nine years.
“He liked the project, he thought it would be great and he decided to join us,” Fred explained.
“And as I said, we are on a good way. We are winning some games, we have already defeated some of the members of the Big Six. For me It's a pleasure to be able to play alongside Casemiro. He's one of Manchester United's great players.”
Casemiro didn’t initially start games for United, with Ten Hag taking time to introduce the 30-year-old to his system in a way that he didn’t need to with Antony after already working together. But he has established himself in a big way in recent weeks, becoming particularly adored by United fans because of his drive and attitude, captured perfectly with his late equaliser against Chelsea last month.