United will pay Madrid $60m upfront with $10m in surcharges for the midfielder’s services, British media reported on Thursday.
“Manchester United are delighted to announce that the club has reached an agreement with Real Madrid to transfer Casemiro,” the club said in a statement announcing the news. The transfer is subject to agreement of personal terms, UK visa requirements and medical screening.
“Casemiro has played over 500 professional games, including 63 at international level for his native country Brazil. He has won 17 major awards in his illustrious career, including five Champions League titles and the Copa America,” the statement added.
The news follows earlier comments from Real manager Carlo Ancelotti, who confirmed that Casemiro had told him his intention to leave the club.
“He wants to take on a new challenge, the club understands that,” Ancelotti told reporters at a press conference ahead of Real Madrid’s La Liga clash with Celta Vigo on Friday.
At the time, Ancelotti said negotiations were “ongoing”.
The Brazil international has won three La Liga titles and five UEFA Champions League titles since joining Real Madrid in 2013.
The 30-year-old, whose current contract runs until June 2025, has made 222 appearances for Los Blancos, scoring 24 goals.
The defensive midfielder will be Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag’s fourth signing this summer, with the club already signing left-back Tyrell Malacia, midfielder Christian Eriksen and defender Lisandro Martínez.
United are currently bottom of the Premier League after getting off to a hot start to the new season with back-to-back defeats in their first two games. Last Saturday United were humiliated 4-0 at Brentford, after which Ten Hag said his team’s plan was “thrown in the trash”.
“They (the players) make bad decisions and that’s football. It’s a game of mistakes and we get punished,” said ten Hag afterwards.
“It’s naive how we played today. You have to play more directly. We put them on, the space was high on the pitch… We’re going to learn, we have to learn. But it’s not good, it’s at this level pretty clear.”
United host Liverpool at Old Trafford on Monday in a clash between two of the league’s closest rivals.