He’s just like Casemiro: Man Utd set to sign a second midfielder after Ederson

After weeks of speculation, at long, long last, Manchester United are set to confirm the arrival of Ederson.

When the news came through that Casemiro was due to leave Old Trafford behind at the conclusion of his contract, it became apparent that United could waste no time in finding a replacement.

The trail of through for a while has been they will look to replace him with not just one player, but potentially two players.

Ederson will be the first. Arriving from Atalanta, he is thought to be the cheaper of the two options Jason Wilcox and Co will welcome to the club this season.

Other options include the likes of Elliot Anderson and Sandro Tonali, although their price tags of around £100m could well be prohibitive.

Man Utd set to confirm two midfield arrivals soon

As the weeks have gone by, it’s become quickly apparent just how much United wanted to bring Ederson to Old Trafford.

Initially, it looked as though he was signing for Atletico Madrid, but the Red Devils moved swiftly to agree personal terms with the player before opening club-to-club talks with Atalanta.

A fee of £35m has reportedly been agreed for the Brazilian to head to English football. From a United sake, they will hope this isn’t a Manuel Ugarte repeat.

Yet, aged 26, Ederson is a seasoned pro, he knows his game inside and out. There should be no danger of Ugarte 2.0 here.

So, what’s next? Well, he certainly won’t be the last midfielder to head through the door. Indeed, according to the Manchester Evening News, the club are also on the verge of signing Colombian youngster Cristian Orozco.

Last year, United struck a preliminary agreement with Fortaleza CEIF to sign the 17-year-old this summer. Well, the formalities are now all completed and he will officially join this summer.

Orozco did not sign immediately as rules with South American players are rather strict; they cannot move until they turn 18. The young midfielder will do so in July.

He has already visited Carrington and will now jet out to Manchester next month to officially put pen to paper.

Why Orozco could be Man United’s new Casemiro

The news of Casemiro’s departure was one that stung, particularly after the campaign the Brazilian had enjoyed.

A veteran of the game, the multiple Champions League winner had not always enjoyed the best of stints in the Premier League but he left on remarkably good terms, scoring nine times in 2025/26. That was the highest number of goals Casemiro has scored in a single season.

Trying to replace not just his output in front of goal but his defensive work will be a challenge. In Ederson, they will be ticking the defensive box.

Described as “the strongest defensive midfielder in the world” by Italian content creator Damiano Coccia, he’s certainly a signing that will help Michael Carrick’s side progress now.

Orozco, however, is very much one for the future. That does not mean he’s a bad signing, though, far from it. The teen is one of the best young midfielders to come out of South America in recent years and has been celebrated as “the next Casemiro” by some.

So, what’s this kid all about? Well, also compared to Chelsea’s Moises Caicedo, one prominent analyst of the academy game has noted that the Colombian sensation is a “destroyer” in the middle of the park “with leadership maturity far beyond his age.”

That certainly sounds a lot like Casemiro and the numbers support that claim nicely. During the U17 CONMEBOL Championship in 2025, the midfielder won a huge number of duels per game, 5.2 of them in fact. To contextualise that, Casemiro won 6.54 duels per 90 in the Premier League this season while Ederson won 5.44 in Serie A.

A really tidy player in possession of the ball, Orozco is particularly press resistant and what will please Carrick and United supporters as they bid to replace Casemiro is the teenager’s energy.

While the Brazilian is a veteran of the game, Orozco is a mere spring chicken with strong recovery pace.

We may not see the Colombian youngster playing many minutes for the senior team in his debut year at Old Trafford but the future is certainly bright.