Michael Carrick and his backroom staff showed support for the Under-21s at Leigh Sports Village on Tuesday.
Carrick attended the game.(Image: )
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Michael Carrick and his staff were in attendance for Manchester United Under-21s' game against Sporting Lisbon on Tuesday. Carrick has made the trip to Leigh Sports Village to show support for the academy.
Ruben Amorim once walked over to observe some of an academy match at Carrington, but he did not make the effort to properly watch a youth game during his one-and-a-half-year tenure. His predecessor, Erik ten Hag, attended an U21 game at Altrincham in September 2022.
Carrick was joined by his assistant, Steve Holland, and first-team coaches Jonathan Woodgate and Travis Binnion, who all sat together in a suite at Leigh Sports Village.
Binnion was formerly U21 manager before stepping up to help Darren Fletcher during his caretaker stint. The 39-year-old has continued to coach the first-team following Carrick's appointment.
Stephen Torpey, head of the academy, was also spotted on Tuesday. Torpey has looked after academy loans since Evans stepped down as head of loans and pathways last month.
Amorim's lack of support for the academy did not go unnoticed, and fans questioned his faith in young players. Toward the end of Amorim's tenure, he made headlines when he suggested Harry Amass was "struggling" on loan in the Championship and pointed to Chido Obi not starting every U21 game.
When asked whether Kobbie Mainoo could change his mind and earn a starting role, Amorim, without any prompting, said: "[Harry] Amass is now struggling in the Championship. Chido is not always a starter in U21s. All these guys played when a lot of people were saying sack the manager."
Amorim also mentioned Toby Collyer in the press conference, saying: "He’s from the academy, he played here, went to West Bromwich, he’s not playing. He played for Manchester United."
The Manchester Evening News revealed that Amorim's comments were viewed as disappointing by sources close to some academy players.