Everton midfielder James Garner, Manchester United badge and Michael Carrick - copyright F365
Everton midfielder James Garner and Manchester United Michael Carrick
Manchester United manager Michael Carrick has raved about Everton midfielders James Garner and Hayden Hackney ahead of the clash between the two sides.
Man Utd will take on Everton away from home at the Hill Dickinson Stadium in the Premier League on Sunday.
The Red Devils will head into the game against David Moyes’s side on the back of a 5-2 victory over Ipswich Town at Old Trafford in the league.
Everton played out a 1-1 draw with Bournemouth away from home in their last Premier League game.
Both Garner and Hackney are likely to feature for Everton against Man Utd, and Carrick has been singing the praises of the two midfielders.
Carrick knows Garner well, with the 25-year-old England international midfielder having come through the Man Utd academy.
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Man Utd sold Garner to Everton in the summer of 2022 for £15million.
Carrick worked with Everton midfielder Hackney when he was in charge of Middlesbrough.
The 24-year-old English defensive midfielder joined Everton from Middlesbrough in the summer of 2026 for £16m.
Carrick praises Everton duo James Garner and Hayden Hackney
Carrick told Man Utd’s official website about Garner and Hackney: “It’s great to see players you try to help at certain points.
“It’s great to see Jimmy go on and do so well, get in an England squad and push for a World Cup place.
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“He’s done fantastic for himself, so I’m delighted.
“He always had the ability.
“Jimmy was always a big hope of ours coming through, and to see him go on and have the career he has is great.
“You take a lot of pride in that as a football club.
“Hayden, of course, I worked with him really closely and really enjoyed working with him.
“He was a fantastic young player at the time and did some really good things for us at Middlesbrough.
“To see him go on and progress in his career is good to see.
“Granted, come Sunday, we don’t want them to do too well, but as a coach, and just on a personal level, to see people and lads you know do so well is good.”
Carrick has also said that he is expecting a tough game against Everton.
The Man Utd boss noted: “A tough game.
“Going to Everton away is always tough, and the game can change and flip so quickly with the supporters and the atmosphere they generate.
“We’re totally expecting that.
“They’ve had a good start and they’ve got some really good attacking players in the team, so we’re expecting a tough game.
“We’ve got to be close to, if not at, our best to get the result we want.”
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