Michael Carrick suffered his first home loss as Man Utd manager, but it’s actually the ultimate proof of how he saved the club from Ruben Amorim.
At a club like Man Utd, you are only as good as your last game, so in Michael Carrick’s case, the vultures are circling after the 2-1 loss to Leeds.
There were many mitigating factors to the loss, but people have always been frothing at the mouth to go “I told you so” when he drops points.
However, this latest loss is actually the final proof of how his arrival saved United from this Leeds loss being their weekly reality had Ruben Amorim left one month later.
Michael Carrick shakes hands with Kobbie Mainoo after the Premier League match between Bournemouth and Manchester United at the Vitality Stadium in 2026 in Bournemouth, England.
Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images
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Michael Carrick reacts during the Premier League match between Manchester United and Leeds United at Old Trafford in 2026 in Manchester, England.
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Man Utd sorely missed Kobbie Mainoo vs Leeds
The midfield looked disjointed against Leeds, and a big reason why that happened is that Kobbie Mainoo was absent due to injury.
Manuel Ugarte and Casemiro are basically two different versions of the same skill set, so United couldn’t progress the ball at all.
Bruno Fernandes had to ultimately drop deep after Lisandro Martinez’s sending off to progress United up the pitch.
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Carrick has built his midfield around Kobbie Mainoo’s press-resistance and combination plays with the forwards in the final third.
He has become one of the important players in the team and the first name on the teamsheet when he’s fit, so his absence was sorely felt vs Leeds.
It is impossible to be sure that United would have won that game had Mainoo played, but dropped points could be seen coming from a mile away when the news of his absence dropped.
It is just as well that Carrick arrived when he did, because had Ruben Amorim stayed as Man Utd manager for another month, this Leeds game would be United’s weekly reality.
Man Utd almost lost Mainoo due to Ruben Amorim
Amorim was sacked at the start of the January transfer window, by which point Mainoo was yet to start a Premier League game.
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The murmurs of Mainoo seeking a six-month loan move were strong and easy to believe, especially because United were willing to sell him for £40m in the summer.
Ultimately, Amorim left before Mainoo, and the player has made the Portuguese manager look extremely silly with his form since then.
Had Amorim stayed past the January window, it’s more likely than not that United would have lost Mainoo.
Considering the results under Amorim, his sacking was inevitable either way; the fight with the board just accelerated it.
However, had Mainoo been offloaded during Amorim’s time at the club, the next manager would have lost a key building block of this club.
Mainoo’s importance rose to the fore in the loss against Leeds, solidifying the argument that Carrick’s arrival when he did actually saved United from Amorim.
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