Youri Tielemans and Michael Carrick after Man Utd beat Roma
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Manchester United showed character by coming from behind to beat Roma in the Champions League. New signing Youri Tielemans says the players are willing to fight to ‘repay’ head coach Michael Carrick.
Youri Tielemans came off the bench in the second half as Manchester United came from behind to beat Roma in the Champions League. The Belgian international replaced Carlos Baleba in the 51st minute as the Reds trailed 2-0.
The comeback began when Bruno Fernandes pulled one goal back in the 58th minute from a penalty kick. This gave United confidence to kick on and win the game, courtesy of a two-minute brace from Matheus Cunha before stoppage time.
United were reduced to 10 men when Cunha was sent off for a second yellow card. They still managed to hang on to secure a second win in four Champions League matches.
Youri Tielemans and Bruno Fernandes rally behind Michael Carrick after win over Roma
It was a game of two halves at Old Trafford on Tuesday night. Roma won the first half 2-0, only to throw away that lead to lose the match after the break. Carrick finally got a response from his players, ending a nine-match winless run.
United had to fight to hold on towards the end, after losing Cunha to a second yellow card – and did what was required to secure three points. That has been a challenge for Carrick’s side this season.
Speaking to Amazon Prime after the match, Tielemans stressed that the players were keen to ‘repay’ Carrick after a difficult period. He said (via BBC Sport): “There has been a lot of pressure on him [Carrick] and that’s how we repay him, with a comeback like this. Big character, big fight.”
When asked if the result was enough to save Carrick his job at United, the 29-year-old added: “That’s a different question. The only thing we can do is stick behind him, fight for him and fight for the club.
“At the end of the day we are on the pitch and we need to show what we are capable of and tonight, especially in the second half, we showed what we can do and we turned up the gears.
“Let’s hope this is a good turnaround for us and let’s hope we can build on this.”
Fernandes, who inspired the victory, was slightly more downbeat in his post-match interview. He knows that there’s a lot of work to do and one win won’t be enough to turn things around.
“It’s about performing at this club, getting results and winning games,” Fernandes said.
“It’s been a long time, we didn’t get a win, it’s been frustrating for them as much as us too, but we didn’t take that in wrong way because it’s normal. Fans want to win games. They are used to seeing this club at the top, winning trophies and it’s been frustrating to see the club in this situation.
“We are all frustrated with the situation and we want to get out of this and hopefully this win today gives us the start of something good for us.”
The captain also addressed speculation in the media about his relationship with Carrick, stressing that he agreed with his coach’s decision to drop him in the 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth. Tielemans and Fernandes both know that United need to back up tonight’s win by beating Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday. Otherwise, the Reds could be sitting in the relegation zone for the upcoming international break.