Carlos Henrique Casimiro (born 23 February 1992), also known mononymously as Casemiro,[2] is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Premier League club Manchester United and the Brazil national team.

[7] After returning to the club, Casemiro played a crucial role in Real Madrid's success, winning numerous trophies including three La Liga titles, three Supercopa de España, three FIFA Club World Cups, three UEFA Super Cups, one Copa del Rey and five UEFA Champions Leagues.

From the age of 11 upwards, he acted as captain to its sides;[9][10] he was known as "Carlão" – an augmentative form of his first name in Portuguese – early on, and would be called up for the 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup.

[12] On 7 April 2012, Casemiro scored the first goal of a 2–0 win over Mogi Mirim at the Arena Barueri in that year's Campeonato Paulista after replacing the injured Fabrício early on, but was later sent off.

[13] São Paulo also won the Copa Sudamericana, with the player making one substitute appearance in a 5–0 home success against Universidad de Chile in the quarter-final second leg on 7 November.

[22] He totalled 41 games overall for the Portuguese club, scoring four goals,[23] including a free kick on 10 March 2015 in a 4–0 home win over Basel in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League.

[27] After being mostly a reserve player under Rafael Benítez, Casemiro became first-choice under his successor Zinedine Zidane,[28] and contributed with 11 appearances in that season's Champions League.

[42] Casemiro was later reported as having previously told his agent to relay a message to Manchester United that he would bring them back into form after their 4–0 defeat at the hands of Brentford, saying "Tell them I’ll fix it.

[49] On 20 September 2023, he scored a brace in a 4–3 defeat against Bayern Munich on his 100th appearance in European competitions, in the opening match of the 2023–24 Champions League season.

[51][52] On 27 October, Casemiro scored his first goal of the 2024–25 season against West Ham as his team lost 2–1 before head coach Erik ten Hag was sacked less than 24 hours after the result.

[55] He played for the Brazil under-20 team at the 2011 South American U-20 Championship and the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup,[56] scoring three goals in 15 appearances in total at this level.

[62] In the final group game at the Arena Corinthians against Peru, he scored his first international goal to open a 5–0 victory, but was also sent off for two yellow cards and suspended from the next match.

[65] In Brazil's third group match on 23 June, he scored the match–winning goal following a Neymar corner in injury time, to help his team defeat Colombia 2–1.

[69] Brazil were eliminated by Croatia in the quarter-finals on 9 December, following a 4–2 penalty shoot-out loss after a 1–1 draw following extra-time, although Casemiro was able to net his spot kick.

[74] Casemiro is an intelligent, physically strong, mobile, aggressive, and hard-tackling midfielder, with an extremely high work-rate and good technical ability.

[73][75][83][84][85] Often described as a "destroyer" in the media,[86] he has drawn praise from pundits for his energetic and combative style of play,[87][88][89] as well as his tactical awareness and abilities as a ball winner, which enable him to cover ground, track back, and press opponents.

[96] Casemiro's playing style has drawn comparisons with that of former Real Madrid defensive midfielder Claude Makélélé,[75] as well as compatriot Toninho Cerezo.