Carrick reflects on Man United 7-1 Roma and has four injury doubts ahead of UCL test
Michael Carrick looked back fondly upon Manchester United’s 7-1 victory over Roma in the Champions League almost 20 years ago ahead of the meeting of the two sides at Old Trafford on Tuesday night, and confirmed that four of his players are likely to miss the test against the in-form Giallorossi.
Manchester United will host Roma at Old Trafford in the Champions League at 20.00 GMT on Tuesday evening. Carrick, joined by midfielder Kobbie Mainoo, sat down for their pre-match press conference on Monday.
Despite the upcoming test against Roma, most of the questions that went Carrick’s way were about United and the difficulty that they have faced over the last few weeks. They have lost three games in a row, a run that started with a 4-1 Champions League defeat away against Como, and have now gone nine matches without a win across all competitions.
Roma, meanwhile, remain unbeaten in Serie A after 10 matches. They have four points after three matches in the Champions League this season with one win, one draw and one loss on their record.
What Carrick said during his pre-match press conference ahead of Manchester United vs. Roma
The first question that came Carrick’s way was about the availability of former Lecce winger Patrick Dorgu, who is just back from injury but is unlikely to feature against Roma.
“Yeah, it was his first day with the group, great to have him back, but he won’t be involved tomorrow. We’ll see how he progresses during the week,” Carrick confirmed.
The United boss did not want to get into a further war of words with centre-back Lisandro Martinez, but dismissed suggestions that the Argentine is not in the right headspace at the moment: “Nah, I’ve got no concerns about commitment at all. Things happen in football, sometimes you make mistakes, sometimes it goes well for you, but commitment is not an issue, for sure.”
Carrick also insists that he is not feeling the pressure despite a dismal run of results heading into the Roma clash.
“No, not at all,” he said. “You never know what is going to happen in the future, but that doesn’t change the way I feel. I can’t wait for the game tomorrow. You might think I’m crazy with the results we’ve had, but I can’t wait for it.”
Despite a turbulent few weeks, Carrick insists that the United squad is united and determined.
“The dressing room is in a good place. Perception is a funny thing, you can make things look in different ways. The commitment from the players, to the club and each other, I don’t question that at all.”
Carrick faced just one question about Roma, and that was about their 7-1 defeat against United in the 2006-07 Champions League quarter-finals. Carrick, not typically remembered for his goalscoring prowess, netted a brace on that occasion.
“It’s a long time ago, eh? It was a magical night, one of the best nights and atmospheres I’ve been fortunate enough to witness. The fact that I scored a couple, and that was unusual, gives me great memories,” he recalled.
Lastly, Carrick confirmed that Luke Shaw will not be available to face Roma and that Leny Yoro and Maruc Rashford are big doubts.
“Leny has a bit of tendon (pain), but he’s been managing it. Luke definitely won’t be around this week. He won’t be fit, and Marcus, we’ll have to see day by day how he keeps improving.”
