News Beat
Michael Carrick has two advantages Solskjaer didn’t have to help Manchester United finish fourth
MICHAEL CARRICK is coy as a coach but was more open as a player.
“It’s an achievement but, listen, it’s not that great,” he said of Manchester United finishing fourth in 2015.
“We can be satisfied with getting in the top four but it’s not worth celebrating.”
Carrick was so on-message he uttered those quotes on the club’s season review DVD in 2015.
That feeling should not have changed for little has changed at United, still merely top-four chasers 11 years on.
Rising from 15th to fourth would be an achievement but not worth celebrating.
Carrick is uniquely placed to steer United back into the Champions League. He helped them do so as a player in 2014-15 under Louis van Gaal but experienced failure as a coach with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in 2018-19.
In the latter, United won two of their last nine Premier League games and lost five. The 1-1 draw at already relegated Huddersfield in their penultimate fixture was more humiliating than some of the defeats.
United’s form spiralled almost as soon as Solskjaer was promoted to permanent manager, though that was purely coincidental.
One issue United had was Solskjaer was so intent on upping their running stats after his mid-December appointment that they ran out of steam for the run-in.
BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS
It was also compounded by a fractured dressing room. Romelu Lukaku, Alexis Sanchez, Paul Pogba and Ander Herrera all wanted out.
Lukaku checked out before the season ended, Sanchez cried off early in the second half at Huddersfield and Pogba outlined his desire for “a new challenge” in the close season.
Herrera’s commitment did not wane even though he had already agreed to join Paris Saint-Germain. He was cajoling team-mates in the dying embers at Huddersfield.
Carrick, so in awe of United as a schoolboy at West Ham he was envious of their blazers, will have taken a dim view of the wantaways.
He is fortunate to have inherited a squad that is not as rotten. For all of Ruben Amorim’s faults, he prioritised squad harmony in pre-season and that bodes well for Carrick.
Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho, Jadon Sancho and Rasmus Hojlund all, to various extents, had their problems and United appear to be in a better place right now after moving them on.
Having spoken to, or interviewed, almost every United squad member, none of them are bad lads. A handful are bad interviewees but that is down to their rawness with the media or character.
The other advantage Carrick has over Solskjaer is United’s schedule. Having beaten the league’s top two, they now have 15 league games within a 16-week period.
Under Solskjaer in 2019, United reached the FA Cup and Champions League quarter-finals, which ensured their midweeks were busy up until late April.
They had 53 games that season. United will end up playing 40 this term, their fewest since 1914-15.
As a player 11 years ago, Carrick will appreciate the benefit of focusing solely on finishing in the top four.
After United lost to Arsenal in the 2015 FA Cup quarter-final, Carrick was recalled to the starting XI and United played their best football under Van Gaal.
Carrick scored one and assisted one in a 3-0 first-half blitz of Tottenham, United produced what remains their best performance at Liverpool in the last 30 years in a 2-1 victory and they battered champions Manchester City 4-2.
Van Gaal played the same XI in all three games amid a switch to the 4-3-3 formation that put him on the map at Ajax in the Nineties.
Carrick went off injured against City and that halted United’s momentum. Injuries to Daley Blind and Phil Jones also had an adverse effect and United lost their next three games.
United only won one of their final six fixtures but still came fourth in 2014-15, one of the lowest-quality seasons in the Premier League era.
Van Gaal guided United back into the top four despite a couple of malcontents. Angel di Maria downed tools and David de Gea was eyeing a transfer to Real Madrid while Radamel Falcao and Robin van Persie were unwanted.
Darren Fletcher said after his second and last match in caretaker charge against Brighton this month that United had a more committed squad than when he worked under Ralf Rangnick four seasons ago.
Top-four was achievable in 2022, only several United players were approaching the end of their contracts, others were disrespectful towards Rangnick, there was infighting and a senior player was branded “poison”.
“They have to dig in, show they want to be part of Manchester United’s future,” Fletcher said of the current squad.
“And ultimately, if you’re not, then I don’t think you should be here or will be here.
“Sounds strong, but that’s just the reality in the way it should be.”
So far, they have shown they want to be part of United’s future.
But finishing fourth would not be worth celebrating.
