Luka Modric addresses impact of Casemiro move from Real Madrid to Manchester United

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Luka Modric has admitted that Real Madrid lost an important player when Casemiro joined Manchester United. United announced the signing of the Brazilian midfielder last month for an initial fee of £60m rising to £70m in possible add-ons.

Despite Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti being more than willing to allow his former teammate to move to Old Trafford, Modric has said that Casemiro was an important player for the La Liga giants.

Speaking to Real Madrid TV, the former Tottenham man said: "We’ve started really well this year and we have a strong team. ALSO READ: Casemiro is already raising standards at United "In midfield, we lost an important player in Casemiro, but we’ve got a lot of other good players to replace him and do a good job. [Aurelien] Tchouameni has adapted really well.

This is [Eduardo] Camavinga’s second year and he had a great first year. [Toni] Kroos has been here for a long time. [Federico] Valverde is also doing really well in any position. [Dani] Ceballos is helping the team a lot. "We’re well equipped in this position." Despite the Croatian now believing that Los Blancos are in a strong position without Casemiro, this did not stop him from paying a heartfelt tribute to his former teammate when he joined United. "Dear Case, I still remember your debut with our club," Modric wrote in an open letter to Casemiro in Marca. "How nervous you were.