Even without a victory at Wembley, Manchester United's season has already been quite remarkable. In his first season in charge, Erik ten Hag led the team to a third-place finish and Carabao Cup victory. An FA Cup victory would certainly be the cherry on top for the Red Devils.
With early-season losses to teams like Brighton and Hove Albion and Brentford—the latter of which, a 4-0 thumping, undoubtedly had fans fearing the worst at the time—such a successful year barely seemed imaginable.
The subsequent £70 million acquisition of Brazilian tycoon Casemiro from Real Madrid was a significant contributor to the improvement in circumstances following that gloomy day in west London.
After seeing United lose to the Bees, the seasoned ace reportedly said he wanted to "fix" the team's issues.
Ten Hag, a former Ajax manager, described the 31-year-old as a "massive player" for the team once he emerged as one. Earlier in the season, Ten Hag praised his star summer acquisition as the "cement" in the team.
As club legend Gary Neville noted, one issue brought on by the midfielder's exceptional play is the drop in standards or quality when he has been rested or suspended this season. According to the treble-winner, if the £350,000-per-week titan is available for selection, "the jump in Manchester United's quality of performance is enormous."
Ten Hag's squad lacks a capable replacement for the five-time Champions League champion, thus it is not surprising that Ten Hag is rumored to be looking to bring in a "younger" midfielder ahead of the upcoming campaign to add depth and longevity.
In the quest to identify the best replacement for Casemiro, Tyler Adams of Leeds United may already be the ideal prospect, according to the Old Trafford club.
In light of the Whites' recent promotion to the Championship, Football Insider reports that the Red Devils are interested in luring the American international away from Elland Road for a sum of about £35 million.
According to 90min, the former RB Leipzig player, who only moved to Yorkshire on a £20 million deal last summer, is almost set to leave before next season as a result of that relegation, with United being one of the interested parties.
Adams did miss the final 12 games of the season due to injury, but before that the former Red Bull Salzburg star had been a titan at Leeds' base of the midfield, having been dubbed a "tackling machine" by analyst Kevin Campbell.
The £55k-per-week warrior still finished the season with the joint-fourth most tackles in the division (89), matching Casemiro's total despite the American's protracted absence thanks to that ball-winning ability.
The similarities between the two players are also demonstrated by the fact that Adams enjoyed a strikingly similar record after averaging 3.7 tackles and 1.5 interceptions from his 24 league appearances, while the current Old Trafford star averaged 3.2 tackles and 1.2 interceptions per game from his 28 league appearances.
The Leeds "monster," as pundit Alexi Lalas called him, averaged one vital pass per game as a sign of his creative flair, while the other appears to possess the same capacity to have an influence offensively. Casemiro also made an average of one crucial pass each game.
Ten Hag won't be thinking about replacing the latter man any time soon, but it would be shrewd to obtain some great competition and backup in the form of Adams, his apparent heir.
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