Michael Carrick has insisted that all of the ‘positives’ that the Champions League can bring for Manchester United can equally deliver negatives if the Red Devils fail to secure it.
The 44-year-old Manchester United legend spoke with members of the press at the Carrington training complex ahead of the Leeds United match on Monday evening.
Michael Carrick has now entered the final seven Premier League fixtures of his 17-match interim head coach reign after his appointment was made in January.
The Red Devils’ run of form under Carrick has seen United enter the Premier League top-four picture since Ruben Amorim was sacked by the club.
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Manchester United head coach Michael Carrick during the Premier League match between Bournemouth and Manchester United at the Vitality Stadium in 2026 in Bournemouth, England.
Photo by Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images
Results have gone in our favour so far – will United take advantage vs Leeds?
A win will put us in a strong position to clinch a Champions League place
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Manchester United are third in the Premier League table and are level on points with fourth-place Aston Villa ahead of hosting rivals Leeds United at Old Trafford.
Aston Villa failed to climb ahead of Man Utd in the Premier League table after Nottingham Forest secured a 1-1 draw at City Ground on Sunday.
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The Red Devils could now open up much-needed breathing room between themselves and Villa if United can overcome Leeds on Monday evening.
Carrick insisted that missing out on next season’s Champions League could impact the Red Devils’ positioning in the summer market and their financials as well.
“Champions League just brings so many positive things,” he said, as per Manchester United’s official website.
“It’s where we want to be, there’s no getting away from that.
“That has ramifications for so many different things – whether that’s players staying, if it’s players coming in, it’s financially, all sorts of different things.
“It’s where we want to be, and we need to try and get used to being in there more often.”
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Is this how Manchester United will line-up vs Leeds?
🤔What would you change?
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Man Utd have already felt the impact of a Champions League-less season at Old Trafford
The Red Devils missed out on a return to the Champions League at the end of the 2024-25 season after Man Utd’s 1-0 defeat to Tottenham in the Europa League final.
United’s lack of European football in the current 2025-26 season was only further intensified with the Red Devils’ early exits from the FA Cup and the League Cup.
The Red Devils have been limited to a 40-match season, which has caused massive pockets of waiting periods for matches in United’s campaign at Old Trafford.
United’s encounter with Leeds is the Red Devils’ first Premier League match in 24 days after the 2-2 draw against Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium in March.
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