Michael Carrick sack latest as Manchester United manager expects to remain in charge
Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini admitted at Monday’s pre-match press conference that he had brought only 17 outfield players with him to Manchester as Roma continue to struggle with a hectic fixture schedule.
Paulo Dybala, Mile Svilar, Manu Kone and Lorenzo Pellegrini are among the Giallorossi contingent to have been absent of late, though it has not affected results as they arrive in England having won four of their last five matches across all competitions - including Saturday’s 5-2 thrashing of struggling Udinese in Serie A, which took them up to third.
That is in stark contrast to Manchester United, whose current nine-game winless run is their worst sequence since 1988/89 as the club are once again plunged into crisis with another manager pushed to the brink.
The under-fire Carrick will remain in charge for the visit of Roma despite a third successive defeat at the hands of Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, with Aston Villa also visiting Old Trafford before the next international break begins.
However, it has been reported that his position will be reviewed again after that, making the next two matches absolutely critical.
“Obviously Manchester United is struggling somewhat in terms of results in the Premier League at the moment,” Gasperini said on Monday evening.
“But we can’t get distracted and too hung up on that situation because we know that Manchester United is a strong team, we know that they have top players in their squad. We know what the atmosphere is going to be like here as well.
“They make things very difficult for the opposition here at Old Trafford, so we’ll be playing tomorrow’s game as if we’re playing against Manchester United at the top of its form.
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“I don’t really know why Manchester United are experiencing the difficulties that they are at the moment.
“But what I do know is that Manchester United is made up of very strong players and sometimes you go through a hard time, but then you get back on track and you start getting good results.
“I hope that is what happens to Manchester United. After tomorrow, obviously.
“He [Carrick] was a great midfielder, a great passer of the ball, understood the game very well.
“Played in one of the strongest Manchester United teams that we have ever seen, so, yeah, lots of respect for him.
“We are looking forward to tomorrow and to have a great night in a fantastic stadium.
“It’s a strong team. We shouldn’t underestimate them because of the results lately. But, for sure, we want to make a great result tomorrow.”