Dimitar Berbatov has spotlighted the transformative impact that former Red Devils teammate Michael Carrick has had at the helm of Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Michael Carrick has overseen 10 Premier League matches as interim head coach and the Red Devils have been flying high since his appointment back in January.
The 44-year-old Manchester United legend has overseen seven Premier League wins from 10 matches and the Red Devils have tasted defeat only once under Carrick.
Carrick was installed as interim manager under the Ineos regime at Old Trafford until the end of the 2025-26 Premier League season after Ruben Amorim’s sacking.
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Michael Carrick during the Premier League match between Bournemouth and Manchester United at the Vitality Stadium in 2026 in Bournemouth, England.
Photo by Robin Jones – AFC Bournemouth/AFC Bournemouth via Getty Images
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What Dimitar Berbatov has noticed differently about Man Utd under Michael Carrick in the post-Ruben Amorim era
Ruben Amorim’s reign as Manchester United manager ended after 14 months and the Red Devils were in sixth place in the Premier League table at the time of his exit.
United have since scaled up the Premier League ladder and Michael Carrick’s Red Devils sit in third place in the table going into the March international break.
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Dimitar Berbatov made an appearance on the Inside Carrington podcast ahead of Man Utd’s 2-2 Premier League draw against Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium.
The 45-year-old former Man Utd striker insisted that Carrick has ‘freed’ the Red Devils from the shackles of Amorim’s restrictive football in the 2025-26 campaign.
“I think even more than brilliant,” Berbatov said on United’s official podcast.
“That’s why I said we’ve been in a difficult situation not so long ago [at] the start of the season, but now all of a sudden everything changed. The team is playing great football.
“They enjoy themselves. They express themselves. They are flying on the pitch with self-belief, with confidence.
“You can see by the way they move and play the ball. They enjoy what they’re doing. We are getting points along the way with that.”
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Dimitar Berbatov’s reaction to Man Utd’s Premier League position under Michael Carrick at Old Trafford
United’s draw against Bournemouth last Friday allowed fourth-place Aston Villa to close the margin separating them from the third-place Red Devils in the table.
However, the Red Devils are tipped as one of the favourites to finish inside the top four after the Premier League club’s run of form under interim boss Carrick.
Berbatov suggested that United are not only picking up important wins under Carrick, but the quality of football being played by the Red Devils have improved.
“We have some great wins with [an] actually great way of playing football,” he added.
“It’s not a coincidence or wins like this that you like one new and all of a sudden, we won it, but we play ugly.
“I think that the team is playing really, really good football. And I mean, it’s now, it’s joy to watch and every time it’s like, okay, we can do more, we can do more because we are third place right now, right? If I’m not mistaken by memory.”
Man Utd will now host Leeds United at Old Trafford for their first match in the post-March international break, with the Red Devils’ fixture set for 13th April.
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