The Glazers' final error of judgement is causing Manchester United a problem in 2024

Erik ten Hag desperately wanted Frenkie de Jong in his first summer at Manchester United but the player's wage deferral with Barcelona proved to be a stumbling block in talks.

United were eventually forced to abandon their pursuit of De Jong and alarm bells rang after defeats against Brighton and Brentford in the first two Premier League games.

It seemed like nothing had changed after a trainwreck 2021/22 campaign, so United reacted by splashing £70million on Casemiro, who signed from Real Madrid on a four-year contract, but the length of the deal was questioned and another Bastian Schweinsteiger situation was feared.

Thankfully, it didn't take long for Casemiro to silence the doubters and he was brilliant in his first season, helping United win the Carabao Cup and qualify for the Champions League.

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That's why his rapid decline last season was so surprising. He went from being a yard ahead of play to being behind it, his passing became sloppy in some matches and reckless and mistimed tackles crept into his game, which was another sign of his qualities diminishing.

Casemiro was brilliant in his first year in Manchester and poor in his second. He is now 32 and it was always possible he would succumb to decline at Old Trafford.

The decision to sign Casemiro for £70m was a high-risk, high-reward move. United gambled he could sustain his performance levels and he demonstrated his quality in Ten Hag's first season in charge, but they made a bet he wouldn't decline so quickly into his time at the club.

Whether the gamble on Casemiro has paid off is up for debate. Without him, United wouldn't have