Michael Carrick wasn’t too downbeat about Manchester United’s start to the season, even though Sunday’s 2-2 draw at Everton left him feeling like his side had dropped two points.
Manchester United had gone ahead twice at Hill Dickinson Stadium but were denied by Ainsley Maitland-Niles’ late equaliser. Carrick believes there was enough in the performance to take encouragement from.
“It’s not that bad, you know,” Michael Carrick said about United’s performance.
“We were that close to coming away with three points today. That’s football. There were little moments we can deal with a bit better, but we’ll be fine.”
Wayne Rooney sees plenty of positives
Wayne Rooney came to a similar conclusion while analysing the match for BBC Sport. The former United striker felt the performance was much better than the result suggested, particularly in midfield.
“I thought it was good away performance,” Rooney said.
“Obviously, I’d be disappointed with the result, but I thought there was a lot more control in the performance.”
Rooney was also impressed by United’s midfield, while pointing out that Everton’s goals came from excellent finishes.
“The midfield three were really good. They were two great strikes from Everton which got two goals, but I think there was encouragement from United’s point of view. They’ll be very frustrated they haven’t won the game, given the performance.”
Michael Carrick certainly felt that frustration afterwards.
“It feels like a defeat,” he admitted.
“We can’t ignore the fact we have taken a point, but it feels that we should have had a lot more.”
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