Manchester United caretaker boss Michael Carrick has insisted that the job feels “natural” to him as he addressed his chances of a permanent stay after masterminding a brilliant 3-2 victory over Liverpool.
United sink Liverpool
Kobbie Mainoo was the hero at Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon after netting the winner to secure all three points for United against their bitter rivals.
It was a rollercoaster contest for United, who boasted a comfortable 2-0 lead at half-time thanks to Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Sesko.
However, the Red Devils fell apart after the interval. Amad’s mistake was capitalised on by Dominik Szoboszlai, who made it 2-1. Goalkeeper Senne Lammens made another horrific error while trying to play out from the back, allowing a thankful Cody Gakpo to level the score.
But Mainoo came up big for United, burying a stunning effort into the bottom corner to ensure the spoils were not shared and in the process, secure Champions League football for his side.
In his post-match interview with Sky Sports, Carrick was full of praise for his players’ resilience and the calm they showed even after Liverpool restored parity. After the final whistle, Carrick spoke to reporters and addressed the game further. Here’s what he had to say.
Job hopes
Mainoo said that he wants to “die” for Carrick, highlighting just how highly the players think of the legendary midfielder. Asked about the job he is doing and his chances of landing it permanently, Carrick answered, “Yeah, maybe. I think that’s one of the biggest things for me, is trying to get the best out of people, and helping players and giving them the opportunity to go and perform and do what they’re good at really.”
“There’s that side and then there’s obviously being part of it today and seeing this place alive and bouncing at the end is a real joy and a pleasure to be in the position. I think as a group of players, they need a lot of credit for the run they’re putting together and the coaching staff as well, especially for the lot of work that goes on.”
“I’m sitting here answering questions but there’s a lot of good work that goes on beyond me. And the pleasing thing is the spirit and the togetherness of the group, I think to see that camaraderie and looking after each other, it was tested at 2-2 and seeing them sticking in and fighting for each other, that’s what we want, a team to be proud of, and the boys have certainly given us that.”
Top performance
Asked about his side’s performance, Carrick explained, “There was a lot today to be happy with and to be proud of. We thought players available-wise that they would try to overload the midfield and it would be a challenge for us to close the spaces in the middle of the pitch.”
“We have some really dangerous, dangerous forwards but we’re asking them to do a lot of work without the ball as well and that’s part of being a good team. So the way we closed that space and made it difficult for them – they’ve got some fantastic players and they made it difficult for us – but I thought the way we stuck at that especially really pleased me a lot.”
“I have to say, the way supporters got behind us after the two goals, it’s easy after that point to get frustrated or to go the other way a little bit, and I thought again spirit and togetherness shows when it’s a little bit of a challenging time. So to feel that we’ve built that and we’re in a position where we’ll all stick together has really pleased me a lot.”
“It was just two mistakes; Amad and Senne [Lammens] have both been immense for us and offered so much within the group and the team to put us in this position. That building on to the end of the game and the way we stuck at it, bounced back, finished well, players coming off the bench and making a difference, I thought it’s probably that spirit and togetherness for everybody that satisfies me the most really.”
“Natural” feeling
Pushed further on whether he feels he has done enough to land the Old Trafford hot seat, Carrick replied, “It’s been a good run, I think we’ve beat some very, very good teams and it’s been challenging, sometimes we’ve won it in some ways, sometimes we’ve won it in other ways. I love doing what I’m doing, it’s a great position for me to be in.”
“It feels natural if I’m being totally honest, I’m not being blase because it’s a difficult role, but it feels that I’ve been here a long time in different times, on and off, but I can understand what it brings.”
“To be sat in this position is a good position to be.”
On whether he’d be disappointed if he were to be overlooked, Carrick told the press, “We’ll have to wait and see. All we can do… I think when we came in, Champions League to be honest was a little bit in distance. We wanted to try to get back into Europe, so to be where we are and the run the players have put together with three games to spare get is a good achievement.”
“It’s just been a step, though, we’re not over celebrating it. Whatever is going to happen is going to happen, I can only do my best work for the club and the players especially and try and help them as best as we can and see what happens after that.”
Champions League boost
Carrick was asked whether the Champions League helps United’s transfer plans and makes the club a more attractive prospect to targets.
He remarked, “It’s a huge step, don’t get me wrong, for so many reasons, I’m not underplaying it, it is a big step. The signs of improvement and being in a position now where we ware with three games to go, there’s a lot of satisfaction that comes with that, but that can’t be everything, that’s the point I’m making.”
“There’s a lot of credit to the staff and the players for doing that, but we want more of that, we want and expect more of that consistently and that’s the message of let’s try and push on and keep improving, it’s not just to sit back and think: ‘that was alright, that was good, we’ve achieved something’.”
Tight bond
When questioned how he has managed to develop the close bond the team enjoys, Carrick said, “I can only say from what I’ve faced and seen with my own eyes really, and ever since we came back through the doors, I think the boys have responded really well to it.”
“I think it comes from trust as well and how you treat each other and the trust between us and the belief, certainly I’ve got in them and the staff have got in them, and we spoke about that before the game, about how much belief we’ve got in them, so trying to give them that confidence to go and play.”
“They’re really food players and it can be a really good team when we put things in place, and that’s proved to be the case over recent months.”
Sir Alex
Before kick-off, it emerged that former United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, was rushed to the hospital from Old Trafford after he fell ill. It’s believed that the iconic United figure is well and has had precautionary checks.
Carrick stressed that he was informed about the situation and that the incident had affected him.
“I haven’t got any updates, so I don’t know the latest as we stand now, I did hear about it before the game so I was aware before the game. All I can say is I wish him… I was very affected by it, the news, and we just hope he’s alright.”
“I just don’t know the latest, but we hope for him to be in good shape and we wish him all the best. I certainly think, I mean hopefully, the result, when he hears about it gives him a good boost.”
Deeper squad
When it was put to Carrick that the demands of next season necessitate a much bigger squad, he agreed and added, “That’s obviously the next challenge, with being in a position where there’s more games. It’s been a bit frustrating at certain points because we’ve had big gaps between games, so there’s a positive and a negative to that, but certainly the balance of the squad.”
“What it looks like, strength, depth, that’s part of the conversations of anywhere. When I came in I was never going to make decisions just to get to the end of the season, it was always for the benefit of the whole football club moving forward.”
“We’re definitely well aware of what that should and could look like and where we want to try and get to.”
Bruno call
Asked why he took of Fernandes towards the end of the game, Carrick replied, “To be honest, it was just there was a minute or so to go and we thought we’d get Leny on the pitch. Josh had came on, Pat had came on, Amad had came on as well and there was nothing behind that apart from it.”
United are next in action on Saturday when they go away to Sunderland.
Featured image by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
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