United’s recent ramshackle play has left them in the Premier League relegation zone and provided no definitive answer on Carrick’s capability, leaving the club’s decision makers with a big choice
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What does the future hold for under fire Man United boss Michael Carrick?open image in gallery
What does the future hold for under fire Man United boss Michael Carrick? (Getty)
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As Patrick Dorgu rose highest in a crowded six-yard box to head in a 96th-minute equaliser, Omar Berrada clenched his fists in celebration and Jason Wilcox applauded. Normally when the cameras pan to them, Manchester United’s chief executive looks on the verge of tears and their sporting director seems to be trying to disappear into zipped-up tops. Not this time. Their joy was probably tinged with relief but perhaps also confusion.
The decision-makers still face another decision. And if the fact Michael Carrick was given extra time to turn their season around may have been because they were paralysed by indecision rather than convinced he represented the solution, Carrick’s last fortnight has not given a definitive answer either way.
His side have not been as spineless and wretched as they were against either Como or Bournemouth. United’s last two matches have brought a victory and a draw. They have also conceded nine in the last three. The faith Wilcox, Berrada – and, by extension, Sir Jim Ratcliffe and the Glazers – showed in Carrick has been rewarded in parts of the games against Chelsea, Roma and Aston Villa, but certainly not over the full 90 minutes of any. Sunday’s 4-4 draw against Villa, following Tuesday’s 3-2 win over Roma, seemed to underline that United are not a serious football team any more. Indeed, ragged and ramshackle, there are times when they are barely a team at all.
And yet, with Carrick imperilled, they have summoned something from within, twice in five days. Maybe they are playing to save the manager’s skin.
But the precedents also included United’s previous 4-4 draw, 11 months ago against Bournemouth and in the final weeks of Ruben Amorim’s reign. Were they playing for him, or just in a game that took on a life of its own? There was also the example of Amorim’s 5-4 win over Lyon; like Carrick’s triumph over Roma, the craziness of it was scarcely a blueprint for future success.
So Wilcox and Berrada have much to ponder. When they opted not to sack Carrick two weeks ago, perhaps it was a case of timing, that their succession planning was not sufficiently advanced to move. They may have been put off by the Fletcher precedent: United’s former players tended to have excellent records as caretaker managers until Darren Fletcher found it tougher in January. Wilcox and Berrada might have found themselves without an ideal interim or permanent replacement.
Now an international break provides the chance to make a change. The onus switches to United’s powerbrokers, even if they again opt not to act. Carrick has confirmed he will not quit. “That’s not going to happen,” he said. Sacking him could make unpopular figures even more unpopular; or it could save the crowd from turning on an Old Trafford favourite. In the triangle of players, manager and hierarchy, only Carrick has had the vocal backing of the Stretford End of late. Carrick may have credit in the bank with the money men as well: by transforming last season and taking United into the Champions League, he made the club £100m.
Manchester United's players have shown some fight for Michael Carrick but is it enough to save his job?open image in gallery
Manchester United's players have shown some fight for Michael Carrick but is it enough to save his job? (Getty)
But he has also taken them into the relegation zone in November. In itself, that could be deemed a sackable offence. Indeed, United have made their worst start in 40 years, when they also took eight points from their first 10 games, when they sacked their manager in November. But Ron Atkinson left them one place above the bottom three; they dropped into it after Sir Alex Ferguson’s first game, a 2-0 defeat at Oxford.
United even had more league wins at this stage in 1973-74, in the season when they went on to be relegated, when, at Christmas, their joint top scorer was the goalkeeper, Alex Stepney.
And for now, United are in danger of the drop. When Amorim talked of them being in a relegation battle in December 2024, they were not really; they had enough of a cushion. Not now; while December could offer some respite, containing meetings with the rest of the current bottom five, the risk is that United’s plight worsens before then.
Omar Berrada and Jason Wilcox must decide whether to stick with Carrick or replace him during the international breakopen image in gallery
Omar Berrada and Jason Wilcox must decide whether to stick with Carrick or replace him during the international break (Getty)
There is no quick fix, no easy answers. Maybe United’s dismal defence will have more solidity when Luke Shaw is finally fit again. There was certainly the sense that the returning players could prove reinforcements. The fit-again Dorgu, who scored in Carrick’s first two games in January, might have scored in his last or extended his tenure. There are signs that, after so many were out of form, a couple of Carrick’s squad are belatedly showing something resembling their best, as Matheus Cunha has in the last two matches. But there are others who have got still worse.
So United need someone to transform their season in the way Carrick himself did last year, even if it is only the temporary boost a new-manager bounce can provides. But they can’t sack Michael Carrick and then appoint Michael Carrick. Do Wilcox and Berrada stick or twist? If the outside world does not know, perhaps they don’t either.