Michael Carrick has plenty of reasons to be frustrated after Manchester United lost 2-1 to Newcastle on Wednesday night, but it was a completely deserved defeat.
Up until now, Michael Carrick had been pretty hard to criticise for his management of Manchester United, but it all came crashing down against Newcastle.
United were beaten 2-1 by Newcastle, who were down to 10 men, and Carrick’s decision-making played a big part in this result.
Here are the four things he got wrong.
After a first defeat, how are you feeling about Michael Carrick for the Man Utd job permanently?
Newcastle United v Manchester United - Premier League
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Michael Carrick talking to Harry Maguire.
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Starting the same front three that struggled vs Crystal Palace
United’s players were largely poor against Newcastle, but from the get-go, Carrick’s decision to name an unchanged front three was concerning.
Against Palace, United were not good at all, getting the win due to the red card, but the front three didn’t exactly nail down their starting spots.
This has been the case for four games now, yet Carrick has kept the same structure and plan in attack. The front four against Newcastle simply didn’t work.
They have all had moments individually, but there was a lack of directness and intensity, which should see Carrick really consider changing things up going forward.
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Bringing Casemiro off
United’s goal came through Casemiro, once again proving to be the biggest threat from set-pieces, as he and Bruno Fernandes combined yet again.
But, chasing a win and needing a goal, the decision to take Casemiro off in the 60th minute was confusing, especially with an 11-day break between games.
Manuel Ugarte was actually okay when he came on, but when needing a goal, it was the completely wrong decision, given what Casemiro offers in the box, with several great balls put in by Fernandes.
Man Utd have lost 2-1 to Newcastle – What went wrong?
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Tyrell Malacia over Ayden Heaven
Noussair Mazraoui was withdrawn due to injury in the 85th minute, and in his place, Carrick opted for Tyrell Malacia, a decision which ultimately led to the defeat.
Malacia was so poor for the Newcastle winner, looking completely out of his depth.
It wasn’t as though Carrick had no choice either, with both Ayden Heaven and Godwill Kukonki better options on the bench.
Malacia shouldn’t be on the pitch or the bench for United; he’s so far off the pace. Carrick’s decision to play him is mind-boggling, and it cost him the unbeaten run.
Is it fair to blame Tyrell Malacia for Newcastle’s winning goal?
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No Amad until the 76th minute
United struggled all game to create chances, with Bruno Fernandes’ crossing the only avenue to opportunities for the Red Devils, yet Carrick waited until the 76th minute to turn to Amad.
The Ivorian didn’t have a chance to really impact the game, but it was a challenge crying out for his technical quality and work rate off the ball.
Against 10 men, Amad could even have been brought on at full-back and would have done better than Diogo Dalot and Malacia.
Carrick has played it safe a lot in his decisions at United since the first games, but against Newcastle, he got it horribly wrong.
This isn’t to say Carrick shouldn’t get the job, but it certainly lessens his chances, and he needs to improve because the last four games haven’t been good enough.
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