The Reds were unbeaten in the final month of 2022, picking up two league wins over Nottingham Forest and Wolves, and advancing to the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup after beating Burnley. 

Despite a small sample size of games in the wake of the international break, three players have been deemed standouts since we returned to action, and they are Casemiro, Marcus Rashford, and Luke Shaw.

You can cast your vote via the official poll at the bottom of this article, but first, why not remind yourself of how our three contenders had a month to remember…

CASEMIRO: 3 appearances / 1 assist / 3 clean sheets 

Since his United debut, Casemiro has gone strength to strength under Erik ten Hag, effortlessly accommodating to life in the Premier League. In our first game back after the World Cup, a mixture of absences and other players recovering from international duty saw us thin on centre-back options, so Casemiro found himself slotting into the backline alongside Victor Lindelof. Unsurprisingly, a player of his professionalism and calibre fitted in with ease as the Reds picked up a win and a clean sheet. 

But our second outing against Nottingham Forest would see the Brazilian back to his usual position in the defensive midfield slot, and his performance was worthy of the Man-of-the-Match award he picked up at full-time. From defence to attack, he was involved in everything and played a key role in our second goal of the game, winning the ball back with a fantastic challenge, before assisting Fred for our third and final scoring effort against Forest.

The Reds dug deep against Wolves to pick up a third consecutive win since the restart, and our Brazilian midfielder showed great poise in the middle of the park to help us keep yet another clean sheet. Casemiro is a worthy contender to be recognised as our best player this month.

MARCUS RASHFORD: 3 appearances / 3 goals / 1 assist 

Marcus Rashford appears to be full of energy under Ten Hag and is continuing to display formidable form. Fresh off the back of an impressive campaign with England at the World Cup, our no.10 hit the ground running with a wonderful solo goal against Burnley, that saw him run nearly the entire opposition half, skipping past defenders before slotting home. 

On the left against Forest, Rashford found himself on the scoresheet once again. Linking up with Christian Eriksen, the pair executed a brilliant corner routine that left the Englishman in acres of space before lifting the ball into the top corner to give us the lead. He was involved once again just a few minutes later, cutting in from the left and assisting Anthony Martial for our second of the game. 

Our no.10 started the game against Wolves on the bench, but delivered the goods when called upon at half-time to enter the fray. On the 77th-minute mark, a quick give-and-go between Rashford and Bruno Fernandes saw the former possess great strength and balance before emphatically firing home the game-winning goal. He has already bettered his numbers from last season and is deserving of this latest recognition. 

LUKE SHAW: 3 appearances / 3 clean sheets

When Shaw returned from the World Cup, it was a matter of business as usual as he slotted into his usual left-back role and was influential down that side both offensively and defensively to help United to a win and a clean sheet against Burnley. 

But when our options at centre-back became depleted, and with a need to play Casemiro in midfield, Ten Hag called on Shaw to play as a left centre-back alongside Raphael Varane in our games against Nottingham Forest and Wolves. In front of the Old Trafford faithful against Forest, our no.23 put on a stellar display and did not put a single foot wrong as the Reds eased to a big three points and a compelling performance. 

Wolves would provide a bigger test, especially tasked with marking the likes of Diego Costa and Adama Traore, but Shaw stepped up to the mark again. The boss labelled his performances since the restart as "fabulous", and the risk in shifting him across the backline paid off as we claimed a third consecutive clean sheet at the Molineux - which is no easy task for any away side to achieve. With his willingness to play out of position comfortable to him, matched with the incredible composure he showed in that central role, makes Shaw a very worthy option for your vote. 

HOW TO VOTE

Simply select your choice in the poll below.

We'll announce the winner in the United App and on ManUtd.com on Friday (6 January).