Manchester United is going through a major zone of turbulence after a worrying start to the season, symbolized by this draw conceded at home (1-1) against Tottenham, the bottom of the Premier League. While the Red Devils thought they could hold the three points thanks to Bryan Mbeumo’s opener (72nd) and the expulsion of Rodrigo Bentancur (78th), they completely collapsed in added time. On a cross from Sandro Tonali, Dominic Solanke crucified the Mancunian rearguard to snatch the equalizer and put an end to Mancunian hopes. This cruel scenario crowns a start to the year far from expectations, where Michael Carrick already finds himself under fire for his tactical choices and the management of his squad while he was praised for the same reasons just a few months ago.
With a poor record of six small points taken in six days of the championship, Manchester United are slipping dangerously and are unable to continue after an encouraging last year. The early elimination suffered in the Carabao Cup before the break against Brighton has already reminded us of the chronic fragility of this team, incapable of returning to the top of the bill in England. On social networks, the anger of supporters continues to grow as the race for qualifying places in the Champions League is already starting to fade away. At the microphone of the English media after this new snub, Michael Carrick did not look for excuses and expressed his frustration: “disappointed to concede a goal like that. No goal is worth taking. It’s another goal conceded at the end of the match. Not taking all the points changes the situation. We’re making things a little more complicated. We can defend much better throughout the entire phase of play as a team and be much more tenacious and ruthless to finish the match.»
A very complicated month of October for Manchester United
Criticism is raining down from all sides on Carrick and his group as the crisis looms over Old Trafford. Consultant for Sky Sports and legend of the Mancunian club, Gary Neville did not hide his concern: “Michael Carrick has a lot to ponder. The day was worrying given his level of performance and the coming week promises to be crucial.» For his part, Jamie Redknapp drew up an even harsher observation: “Brighton in the Carabao Cup, leading 2-0 and losing 3-2, that’s unheard of and it doesn’t happen at Old Trafford, except with this team. I don’t see enough connections in this midfield and they seem devoid of any confidence, ideas or patterns of play, just playing out from the back, and Tottenham were simply much better than them in every area, but it’s a recurring theme this season. Their energy level is insufficient and they seem disorganized going forward, there was no real structure. The team is not good enough or strong enough, and Michael (Carrick) needs help there.»
To make matters worse, the schedule facing the Mancunians between now and the end of October looks particularly daunting. Michael Carrick’s men are set to play four of their next five games away from Old Trafford. The marathon will begin on October 13 with a European shock on the pitch of Atlético de Madrid in the Champions League, followed on October 18 by a trip to Leeds in the Premier League. Three days later, on October 21, United will fly to Italy to face Como on the European stage. The only lull at home is scheduled for October 25 with the reception of Bournemouth, before concluding this month of all dangers on October 31 with a shock at the top at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea. It remains to be seen whether Michael Carrick will still be the starter for the Red Devils by Halloween…
