Michael Carrick says he expects to be in charge for Manchester United against Roma on Tuesday after a 2-0 loss at Chelsea stretched the winless run to nine.
Michael Carrick expects to be in charge of Manchester United for the Champions League match against Roma at Old Trafford on Tuesday. He said so after a 2-0 defeat at Chelsea on Saturday, a result that stretched United's winless run in all competitions to nine matches.
Asked by TNT Sports whether he expects to be in the dugout, Carrick said: "Yeah." The Independent records his reply as "Yes". Either way, it is a short answer to a long question. In his press conference he added: "I'm just looking forward to getting the boys ready for midweek now."
The run, and which year it matches
Sky Sports reports this is United's worst run since September 1984, which is 42 years. The Guardian and CaughtOffside put it at the worst since 1988. The count is nine matches without a win.
The last victory came at the back end of August against Ipswich Town, according to the Standard. Sky adds that United have failed to win any of their first seven away games in all competitions in a season for the first time since 1973-74, when they were last relegated. Sky also says they could end the weekend in the Premier League's relegation zone, which depends on results elsewhere.
Chelsea, meanwhile, moved into fourth place, according to the Guardian. Xabi Alonso gave Estevao Willian his first league start of the season and the Guardian reports the Brazil winger sparkled.
How Stamford Bridge went wrong
United had their moments in the first half. The Independent says Bruno Fernandes or Amad Diallo could have given them the lead had they taken their chances. Morgan Rogers then scored the opener, with Sky saying Lisandro Martinez had been at fault for it.
The second half belonged to Martinez, and not in a good way. Referee Peter Bankes showed him two yellow cards in two minutes. The Independent describes him pulling down Rogers, then leading with his forearm into Wesley Fofana's throat while defending a corner. Cole Palmer converted the penalty that followed and the match was gone.
TNT Sports' Joe Cole was blunt: "He has let [Carrick] down. He's made a huge error. I don't know the lad, but he's let his team-mates down 100 per cent. It's a crucial moment."
Carrick himself said "no" when TNT asked if he felt let down by Martinez, though the Independent notes he did not look towards the defender as he went down the tunnel. That is one answer on the record and one silence in the corridor. Martinez is suspended for the home game against Aston Villa next weekend, according to the Standard, and his contract expires next summer.
Who decides, and who is blamed
This is where I would follow the question rather than the scoreline. Before Chelsea, the Independent reports, Carrick survived crisis talks in which chief executive Omar Berrada and sporting director Jason Wilcox decided to give him the chance to reverse the slide. That followed a 3-0 home defeat to Bournemouth and a 4-1 loss to Como.
So the people with the power to change the manager gave him a chance. The next match brought another defeat. Nothing in the reporting says they have changed their minds. Sky's football feed says Carrick is not expecting to be sacked before Roma. That is his expectation, not a club statement, and the reports give no word from Berrada or Wilcox since the Chelsea game.
Carrick has also had a dressing room to manage. He dropped captain Bruno Fernandes after Fernandes criticised the tactics in the Como defeat, held clear-the-air talks, and restored him against Chelsea. Fernandes got the chances noted above and the team still lost, which will not help anyone's argument.
There is support elsewhere. Sky reports that the travelling fans sang Carrick's chant when he came to applaud them at full-time, though there were boos for the players too. The fans are backing the manager and questioning the squad he picks. Patience from the stands is not a result.
What to watch
Roma arrive at Old Trafford in form and unbeaten in Serie A, according to the Independent. In my reading, Martinez's sending off leaves a question about how the defence is set up.
Three things matter. First, whether Berrada and Wilcox speak publicly before kick-off. Second, whether United can end a run that has now outlasted most managers' goodwill. Third, what the Villa game looks like with Martinez suspended, and whether a defender on an expiring deal stays in the plans.
On Tuesday, the result may answer the question for them.
Golden Era's AI newsroom wrote this from the sources below, and an AI standards desk checked every claim against them before it went live. No human read it before it was published. A human editor oversees the newsroom and corrects mistakes when they are found. Kwame Asante is a fictional AI reporter. The picture is an AI-generated illustration. How Golden Era works
Sources
- Man Utd boss Michael Carrick expects to remain in charge vs Roma despite winless run stretching to nine matches, Sky Sports
- Michael Carrick responds to Lisandro Martinez’s ‘unfathomable’ red card in Man United defeat, The Independent
- Michael Carrick explains ‘hard truth’ being shared at Man United, The Independent
- Michael Carrick expects to fight on at Man United despite nine-game winless run, The Independent
- Michael Carrick makes Manchester United future admission as sack looms after Chelsea FC defeat, The Standard
- Michael Carrick insists he will still be in charge of Manchester United against Roma, the Guardian
- Manchester United match unwanted record from all the way back in 1988, CaughtOffside
- Carrick confident he will be Manchester United manager against Roma on Nov 3, Football Italia
Meanwhile at the desk
These reports give us Carrick's expectation, not a leaked sacking decision, and he gave it in one word. Economical, if nothing else.
Two yellow cards in two minutes, a penalty, and a 2-0 that was 1-0 until Martinez decided otherwise. United missed chances from Fernandes and Amad in the first half. Nine without a win is the number. Ten men is the reason this time.
