Real Madrid: Casemiro the striker?

Carlos Casemiro has been Real Madrid‘s best player thus far this season. As a center defensive midfielder, the Brazilian is the glue that holds Zinedine Zidane’s formation together. But, Casemiro did not always want to be a CDM.

Brazil is a hotbed for football talent. With the likes of Pele, Neymar, Dani Alves, and too many others names to list here, the competition to be recognized by a big European club is fierce. As a young teenager, Casemiro realized this competition and made a snap decision.

At a trial with Brazilian giants Sao Paolo, Casemiro told the media in detail how he became a midfielder and why it was necessary.

"“I arrived at Sao Paulo when I was 11 or 12 years old, and there were 300 people. It was a trial and they were going to select 50 players”"

At the time, the budding Real Madrid legend was training as a striker as he said he was good at getting into the right spots in front of goal and using his head to redirect crosses. But, when he saw that 50 or more of the trial attendees raised their hand’s when asked who played striker, Casemiro realized that maybe he should change his position.

"“I remember that the coach asked who was a goalkeeper and then three people raised their hand and then he asked who was a forward and 50 people raised their hand. So I kept my hand down, there was a lot of competition. He then asked who was a No.10 and there were another 50 with their hands up.”"

When the coaching staff asked who played goalkeeper, only three hands went up. Casemiro took his chance when he saw only eight players raise their hands as a defensive midfielder and threw his name in the hat.

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This, however, did not come without skepticism from the coaching staff who told him he was built to be a number nine, out and out striker. His response was emphatic.

"“They [the coaches] insisted that I was built to be a forward, but I insisted that no, that I was a defensive midfielder and that’s how it all started.”"

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez, along with suggestions from Zidane, jumped at the chance to sign Casemiro in the summer of 2013 after he had spent just five months with the club on loan from Sao Paolo.

Los Blancos signed the Brazilian international just eight days after he scored his first goal with the club for the Real Madrid Castilla team.

And, after a year on loan in Portugal with FC Porto, the decision was an easy one for then manager Carlo Ancelotti and his staff. Casemiro was a first team player and deserved significant playing time.

Zidane gave Casemiro some great advice in his early days with the first team, “He looked at me and told me to calm down and that when I started playing then I wouldn’t stop playing again.”

That statement holds true this season especially as he has been a regular for both club and country just two months into this campaign.

Thank goodness Zidane and Perez had the foresight to sign Casemiro to Real Madrid as he has been a critical cog ever since returning from loan. If it wasn’t for him, Los Blancos probably couldn’t have won three Champions League titles.

The moral of the story? Don’t be afraid to test yourself or think outside the box!

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