The key takeaways from Michael Carrick’s pre-match press conference

Michael Carrick has spoken to the media ahead of Manchester United’s weekend fixture against Aston Villa, with the head coach commenting on Carlos Baleba and Patrick Dorgu’s injuries, reflecting on his side's 3-2 comeback against Roma in the Champions League, the 40th anniversary of Sir Alex Ferguson’s arrival at Old Trafford, and former manager Ole Gunnar Solkjaer’s comments about his future.

United head into Sunday’s 4:30 pm kick-off in a brighter mood, having won their first game in 10 matches, overturning a 2-0 deficit, to defeat Italian side Roma in the Champions League.

Carrick will be concerned with injuries as his side lines up, with key figures either on the mend or still nursing their injuries, as he comes under pressure to stabilise his position.

A win is vital for his chances of survival as a Manchester United manager, with the footballing world heading into an international break following the weekend fixtures, where Carrick will have two weeks to poise his side for an upcoming trip down the M62 for a career-defining fixture against rivals Liverpool.

Carrick confirmed that new summer signing Baleba will be out for a number of weeks with injury, ruling him out of Sunday’s fixture, and confirming he would not be joining the Cameroonian international side during the break.

“Carlos we don’t know exactly [the severity], but it’ll be a number of weeks yet,” Carrick said.

“Definitely not this week and not over the international break, it will be a little bit longer yet.”

The £70 million signing from Brighton has already missed seven matches for Manchester United, playing 397 minutes across seven games this season.

In the first game that he and Kobbie Mainoo started together, the pair performed well despite being 2-0 down at half-time, before Baleba came off after marking a darting run into the Roma's box, clutching his left leg as he fell down in pain.

On the brighter side, the mesh between left-back and left-wing that is Dorgu is expected to be on the repair, with Carrick mentioning that he is "slowly getting back" after missing seven successive games through injury.

With United in the midst of a small injury crisis, it will be all hands on deck for the upcoming weeks.

Regardless of how well the last 35 minutes went against Roma, the images we saw across the first 45 cannot be forgotten.

Tepid, slow, beaten man-to-man, it looked like the same familiar story we have seen unfolding across our scenes as United went 2-0 down into the break.

Carrick spoke about the first half, mentioning that he did not think the first half was “that bad,” but “there were moments there that we left ourselves short really."

A resurgence in the second half to record a first win since 10 September was an electric feeling, but it does not erase the wrongs of the start of this season.

Carrick was keen to stress that one result cannot define the remainder of their season, describing the comeback as a "one-off," and insisting that "nothing is achieved yet", with United needing to use the result as a platform for further improvement.

“We scored some goals from nowhere. I thought we played really well and deserved to win the game. Nothing is done yet. It is one moment in time that we need to use to move forward. We need more of it, for sure," he said.

He went on to add that: “Little moments here and there have changed games" for United in recent weeks, but the squad is "showing signs of improvement".

Friday also marks 40 years since Ferguson arrived at Manchester United, with the legendary manager's influence remaining an important part of the club's identity.

Carrick was signed by the legendary Scotsman for an initial fee of £14m, eventually rising by another £4.6m.

Ferguson would originally claim: "I think we may have ended up paying two pence more than I would have liked," but by the end of his 12-year stint at United, he would have played 464 games, winning 11 major honours, including five Premier League titles and the 2008 Champions League.

“It's something definitely worth celebrating as a football club, 40 years this week since he came here,” Carrick mentioned. “I am probably closer to him, and speak more to him now, than I did when I was playing. Ever since he came here, the impact he has had on me as an individual was immense."

Despite Ferguson’s eventual success in England, the first few years were a haze of inconsistency and underperformance, with him nearly being sacked on a number of occasions.

Carrick will be hoping for his own Mark Robins moment, with it possibly having already happened earlier in the week against Roma.

Carrick was also asked about comments from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who recently backed his former teammate to remain in the Manchester United job.

The current manager admitted that he had not seen the Norwegian's interview with a broadcaster in his home country, but was full of praise for his former colleague.

"I don't think actually too many people know me really. Ole is probably one of them. Ole is a fantastic man, a fantastic person and if he wants to come back into the game and get back into the game and manage, it would be great to see him back."

Solskjaer’s support comes at a particularly compelling time for Carrick, who is at the greatest risk of being dismissed at any point during his career.

Do not look too deeply into the parallels, however, with Solskjaer also coming from 2-0 down to defeat a Gian Piero Gasperini Italian side in the Champions League, losing 5-0 in the Premier League the following weekend.

Anything close to a 5-0 defeat against Villa on Sunday will, without a shadow of a doubt, see Carrick cast away from the dugout.