Casemiro singled out by five Brazilian pundits after Haiti win raises fresh World Cup concerns

Five of eight O Globo columnists singled out Casemiro as Brazil’s poorest performer in their 3-0 Group C victory over Haiti in Philadelphia, intensifying scrutiny of the former Manchester United midfielder at the 2026 World Cup.

Matheus Cunha scored twice and Vinicius Junior added a third as Carlo Ancelotti’s side recovered from a frustrating opening draw against Morocco to climb to the top of Group C. Casemiro, who left Old Trafford when his contract expired this month, partnered Bruno Guimaraes in a holding midfield role and played every minute — a marked contrast to the Morocco game, where he was substituted at half-time.

Despite the clean sheet and the comfortable scoreline, O Globo asked its panel of eight columnists and correspondents to assess individual performances, and five chose Casemiro as the standout negative. “He struggled even against a much weaker opponent and stood out in midfield, which featured Guimaraes and [Lucas] Paqueta who played well,” wrote one. A second added: “He hasn’t found his form in the competition yet. He seems lost, below his usual level.”

A third columnist went further: “It’s impressive how nervousness is coming from someone where experience was expected. Both performances so far are worrying. He could lose his place, which he only holds because of Ancelotti’s confidence in him.” Two more were equally blunt — “Luckily, it was Haiti. When pressured, he couldn’t hold up” and “He couldn’t even defend well or organise the build-up play.”

Not all Brazilian media shared the verdict. By the raw numbers, Casemiro finished the Haiti match with the most duels won for his side, the most tackles, and the most fouls won — statistics that other outlets used to offer a more measured assessment.

Ancelotti has publicly backed his midfielder throughout. After the Morocco draw, the Brazil manager defended his decision to withdraw Casemiro at the interval and pushed back against individual criticism. “They are good players. I think I made the right choices and I won’t accept any criticism of individual players,” he said. “If there is any criticism, it concerns the whole team. You can’t expect the team to be perfect from the start; you don’t win the World Cup in the first match. My confidence in the players is absolute.”