Diogo Dalot argues there are similarities between the styles of football Manchester United have played under Ruben Amorim and Michael Carrick, but the right-back has revealed the biggest difference he has experienced to date.
Michael Carrick has helped Manchester United turn their season around since returning to the club as head coach in January.
In doing so, Carrick replaced Ruben Amorim, who was struggling to get United back into the top four after a topsy-turvy first half to the season. That led to him losing his job and Ineos turning to Carrick.
It remains to be seen if Carrick will do enough to warrant the job beyond this season, but United’s 3-1 win over Aston Villa gave the Red Devils a three-point margin in third place, with eight games left to play in the Premier League.
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Michael Carrick speaking to Diogo Dalot
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Diogo Dalot shares biggest difference between Michael Carrick and Ruben Amorim
Diogo Dalot claims the tactical shift under Carrick has not been as dramatic as it may appear for United fans.
United have lost one game since Carrick became head coach. If that level of form continues for the rest of the season, Champions League football will be guaranteed for the 2026/27 campaign.
As a favourite under Amorim, Dalot is unlikely to badmouth his former coach, so he’s made a kind comparison from the methods he’s seen with Carrick as head coach.
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Dalot believes the differences are smaller than many assume.
“If you analyse it closely, things are not that different from what we were doing with Ruben,” Dalot told DAZN Portugal.
The right-back went on to explain the biggest difference is the profile of player, playing with less centre-backs and full-backs instead of wing-backs.
“If you look at the pieces of the game individually, you don’t see that many differences,” he added.
“The biggest difference is the profile of the player. Now we play with one less defender and one more attacking player.
“As I say many times, at the end of the day what really matters is the result. When confidence is high, with the quality of players we have, sometimes you don’t even need to say much and players go on the pitch and perform well.”
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Ruben Amorim and Michael Carrick as Man Utd managers
Ruben Amorim vs Everton and Michael Carrick vs Newcastle as Man Utd managers
Diogo Dalot is Man Utd’s second-longest serving player
Dalot, 26, is into his fifth season at Old Trafford and has remained a regular under Carrick. He is currently the second-longest serving player in United’s first team.
The Portugal international still feels young but enjoys the extra responsibility on his shoulders in the dressing room.
“I enjoy having that responsibility,” he added.
“What I try to do every day is represent the values of the club as best as I can. The behaviours and attitudes I show daily are very important to me because I know I can set an example.”
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