Carrick expects to be in charge for Roma as United winless run reaches nine
Michael Carrick expects to still be in the dugout when Manchester United host Roma in the Champions League on Tuesday night, even though Saturday’s 2-0 defeat at Chelsea stretched the club’s run without a victory to nine matches.
The result at Stamford Bridge followed a familiar pattern. United were the better side for long spells of the first half but failed to take their chances, and the afternoon fell apart after Morgan Rogers put Chelsea ahead. Lisandro Martínez, who was at fault for that goal, was then sent off for the foul that gave away a penalty, and Cole Palmer scored from the spot.
According to Sky Sports, nine games without a win in all competitions is United’s worst sequence since September 1984. The club have also gone through their opening seven away fixtures of a season without a victory for the first time since 1973-74, the campaign that ended in relegation.
“Yeah”: Carrick on Roma
Carrick was widely tipped to lose his job after last weekend’s 3-0 home defeat by Bournemouth, but the club stood by him and he spent the week explaining the hard truths shared behind closed doors. When TNT Sports asked whether he expected to be in charge against Roma, his answer was a single word: “Yeah.”
Pressed again in his press conference, he kept the focus on the next game. “I’m just looking forward to getting the boys ready for midweek now,” he said.
He was also asked whether the squad is ready for a scrap near the bottom of the Premier League table. “You can look at it like that. You can also look at how far you can move up the league quite quickly if you win football matches. That’s the way it has to be approached for sure,” Carrick replied.
In comments carried by the Guardian, he played down any stigma about where United might end the weekend. “There’s no words I’m going to explain to you now that makes it any different,” he said. “It’s not going to change it. We’ve got to move forward and win matches, it’s as simple as that.”
No public criticism of Martínez
Carrick did not single out Martínez for blame. He said he had not watched the incident back, and when TNT asked whether the Argentine had let him down, he said “no”. He did, however, describe the red card and the second goal as “a major part of the game”.
The travelling fans kept singing his name at full time, and the head coach was full of praise for them. “The supporters have been absolutely amazing,” he said. “We’ve got to give them something to really get their teeth into in a good direction.”
Two more games, says The Athletic
Sky Sports’ review of Sunday’s papers reports that, according to The Athletic, the United head coach is set to get a minimum of two further games to turn things around.
That puts the spotlight firmly on the visit of Roma, followed by Aston Villa at Old Trafford next Sunday. Carrick’s position was already in doubt after the Bournemouth rout, and only a positive result in the coming week is likely to ease the pressure on him.
