Casemiro and Raphael Varane's winning percentage in cup finals
By Euan Burns
There are certain players in world football that just seem to know how to win the biggest games. The good news for Manchester United is that they have two of them in the team for Sunday's Carabao Cup final.
Casemiro and Raphael Varane are two of the most heavily decorated current footballers out there and it is of immense importance that they are both at the top of their game from United's perspective on Sunday afternoon against Newcastle.
They are yet to win silverware with Manchester United, but here is a look at their record in finals over the years.
Casemiro and Raphael Varane before Real Madrid
Raphael Varane joined Real Madrid in 2011 having broken through at French side RC Lens. As is perhaps to be expected, he did not feature in finals during his time at Lens, meaning they have all come for Los Blancos and the French national team.
Casemiro spent three years in the first team at Sao Paulo before he left Brazil for Real Madrid Castilla and then the Real Madrid first team in 2013. He also had a brief loan spell at Porto in 2014/15. He was part of the Sao Paulo team that won the Copa Sudamericana in 2012.
Casemiro and Raphael Varane finals at Real Madrid and internationally
Moving to Real Madrid just two years apart, Casemiro and Varane have shared much of the same glory in the Spanish capital. Both players won the Copa del Rey final in 2013/14, although interestingly, that was their only triumph in Spain's domestic cup.
Casemiro
Casemiro has played in 17 different finals for club and country across his career and he has won a staggering 16 of them. His only international triumph was the Copa America final in 2019, although he did win three Under-17 and Under-20 tournaments with Brazil.
He won a staggering 15 finals with Real Madrid across the Copa del Rey, Supercopa de Espana, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup.
That means Casemiro has won 94.1% of the finals he has played in at senior level.
Raphael Varane
The story for Varane is ever so slightly different. Having played in 18 finals, he has actually lost two of his. One defeat is the same as Casemiro. Real Madrid were beaten by Atletico Madrid in the 2018 UEFA Super Cup by a 4-2 scoreline.
Varane also lost the 2022 Qatar World Cup final against Argentina. He was not in the tournament squad due to injury when France were beaten by Portugal in the Euro 2016 final.
He has won the Copa del Rey, the Supercopa de Espana, the Champions League, the Super Cup, the World Cup in 2018, the Club World Cup, and the UEFA Nations League with France in 2020/21.
For Varane, he is slacking slightly behind with a win ratio of 88.9% of the finals he has played in at senior level.
Both expected to face Newcastle
Varane and Casemiro have been crucial performers for Manchester United so far this season under Erik ten Hag. They will certainly be starting the Carabao Cup final against Newcastle providing both are fit.
Casemiro will be back from his domestic suspension just in time, while Varane has largely managed to stave off the injuries that have been a factor in his career.
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