Why Casemiro plays with the wrong name on his shirt
Casemiro has been a truly transformative figure at Old Trafford since his move to Manchester United from Real Madrid in the summer.
The Brazilian defensive midfielder has dominated in central areas and become a key player under Erik ten Hag, who has reversed United's sliding fortunes with a brilliant run of results after a poor start to the season.
Casemiro is already a modern great thanks to his trophy-laden years with Real, but did you know the name printed on his shirt has a slight mistake?
His full name is Carlos Henrique Casimiro. Notice the extra 'I' in the surname? Back at Sao Paulo, a certain kit official made the most elementary of errors and sent the midfielder out with 'Casemiro' on his shirt instead of 'Casimiro'.
Speaking to Football Focus, Casemiro revealed he is superstitious about such matters and elected to continue wearing the wrong name as he played well during that match.
It's not Casemiro... it's Casimiro!
— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) February 4, 2023
So why has he had his name printed incorrectly on his shirts for nearly his whole career?#MUFC #BBCFootball pic.twitter.com/O34I7sOfN6
"So the thing is, my name is Carlos Henrique Casimiro, with an 'I' there. I remember that I played a game for Sao Paulo and the club got my name wrong. They wrote it with an 'E'.
"I played really well in that game and I'm a superstitious person. I said to them: 'Just leave it like that, as things are going well.'
"So the name stuck, but my name is Carlos Henrique Casimiro. It was a mistake made in one game and I said: 'No need to change it, leave it as it is.'"
While such superstitions aren't for everyone, there no doubting the on-pitch impact Casemiro has made since joining United.
Having quipped "Tell them I'll fix it" upon watching the Red Devils' 4-0 thumping at the hands of Brentford at the start of the season, Casemiro has made good on his word by making United one of the most improved teams in the Premier League.
On this edition of The Promised Land, part of the 90min podcast network, Scott Saunders & Rob Blanchette discuss Jadon Sancho's return as a number 10 for Manchester United, Marcel Sabitzer's arrival from Bayern Munich & more. If you can't see this embed, click here to listen to the podcast!
He has earned enormous praise from manager Ten Hag, too, with the Dutchman lauding his star role in the FA Cup victory over Reading when he scored twice.
He said: "Casemiro is magnificent. In front of the back line, always taking good positions, in and out of position. And he can deal with the ball, he can give the right pass. So, he can accelerate the game and if necessary, he can score."