Michael Carrick’s Manchester United can make it five wins from five against West Ham on Tuesday
Manchester United are at peak performance and firmly in Champions League contention under Michael Carrick. And they can secure a fifth consecutive victory against West Ham on Tuesday evening, following Saturday’s 2-0 triumph over Tottenham at Old Trafford.
Bryan Mbeumo and Bruno Fernandes found the net in each half as United overcame Thomas Frank’s 10-man Spurs on Saturday. Victory over the Hammers would see United overtake Aston Villa in third place, ahead of Unai Emery’s side’s fixture against Brighton on Wednesday evening.
Carrick assumed control on an interim basis following Ruben Amorim’s departure and will remain in charge until the season’s conclusion.
United officials have offered no indication as to who will assume the manager’s role permanently next term, but the former midfielder is certainly making a compelling case for the position.
Here, the MEN examines two of the most significant stories surrounding United ahead of the West Ham fixture, with loanee Marcus Rashford attracting attention in Spain and Gary Neville offering insight into the club’s pursuit of a new permanent boss.
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Marcus Rashford earns acclaim
Rashford’s future at Manchester United continues to dominate discussion after the loanee sought to revitalise his career at Barcelona.
The striker has encountered mixed fortunes at Camp Nou, but seized the opportunity of a rare start against Mallorca with both hands – earning collective praise from the Spanish media. Rashford stepped into the injured Raphinha’s role in Barcelona’s line-up, marking his first start since 3 January.
The English forward was substituted in the second half to a standing ovation from the crowd. Mundo Deportivo commended Rashford for invigorating Barca after a lacklustre beginning. “By far, one of Barca’s most purposeful players in a first half that was collectively very flat,” read an article.
“Taking [Hansi] Flick’s challenge to heart, he assumed attacking responsibility when the game looked its worst, producing the most dangerous shots, the second leading to the 1-0 goal, and sending a beautiful free kick straight off the crossbar. Substituted to well-deserved applause.”
AS noted that Rashford’s form has been on the up as he’s settled into life in Spain. Meanwhile, the Barca Universal website awarded the striker an 8.5/10 rating.
“Rashford was perhaps Barcelona’s most potent threat in the first half as he did not hesitate to cut in and shoot, creating a ruckus in the Mallorca area and bombarding Roman’s goal with powerful strikes,” their report stated.
“He also did well providing a wide threat, although his crosses were well defended for the greater part. In fact, the opening goal stemmed from his shot on goal, which fell kindly for [Robert] Lewandowski.”
Gary Neville provides Man United manager update
Neville has revealed details about United’s procedure for appointing a new permanent manager, stating he directly contacted the club and that the hunt for a permanent successor to Amorim is well underway.
Speaking on The Gary Neville Podcast, he said: “I made my position clear a few weeks ago, and what I’m not going to do is repeat it every week, but what I did, I actually spoke to the club, because ultimately the club get asked all the time from journalists and broadcasters, what’s the position of the club.
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“It’s a very difficult situation, you’ve got a massive movement now with what’s happened towards giving Carrick the job, saying that, really, he should be considered. That’s only going to build the more that he wins and the more that he gets closer to Champions League football.
“I asked the club what is the official position of the football club in terms of what you’re saying publicly to everybody else. I have to say I thought their answer was pretty good. They said they’ve actually begun the process now, starting to look for another manager, which I thought right.
“That’s good to hear because you need to plan for everything. They’ve started the process of speaking to and looking at other managers, building all the sorts of data and analysing who should be the next manager of the football club. But what they’ve said is they’re not going to be bounced into – irrespective of wins or draws or losses on the pitch in this next couple of months – making an appointment. They’re going to wait until towards the end of the season.”
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