Michael Carrick’s at the wheel — how “back” are Man United?

It is a pretty good time to be a Manchester United fan at the moment. Three wins in a row. The water tastes sweeter, there is a spring in your step. Life is good once again, and you find yourself on cloud nine.

What a difference three weeks can make! From agony to unbridled ecstasy, big Michael Carrick has galvanised the Man United ship and taken it out of choppy waters.

But the million-dollar question is quite obvious: is Carrick well and truly at the wheel for the Red Devils? To answer that question, we have two of our writers, Delwyn Serrao and Anshuman Joshi, both Manchester United fans, weighing in with their respective outlooks regarding the current spell of good times at the club.

Three wins in a row. Storming start. Surely we are back?

Delwyn

When Michael Carrick was announced as the interim coach until the end of the season, there was nothing but a bleak picture of dismay and angst. With back-to-back games against the top two sides in Manchester City and Arsenal, it was a bona fide hospital pass of a situation, and I had virtually zero expectations. I was pretty vocal about the fact that I would be very happy if we managed to squeeze a draw out of both those games.

But deary me, big Michael Carrick rocked my world, and how! From out-rondo-ing Pep Guardiola’s City and then becoming the first team to hand the Gunners a loss at the Emirates this season, the emotions went from pain to joy. If that wasn’t enough, we went on to beat Fulham in typical Man United fashion, with a smattering of the Fergie time nostalgia that is the USP of our great club.

Three games, three wins, nine points, and into the top four. Michael Carrick has brought Man United back from the doldrums, and it seems he is only getting started. Whisper it softly, but we might be back!

Anshuman

This is as “back” as United have been since lifting the FA Cup nearly two years ago. What has transpired for the most part since then is unconvincing, unfavourable football, both under Erik ten Hag and then Ruben Amorim after him.

The INEOS contingent has made many mistakes since taking over the sporting operations from the Glazers in 2024, and while they’re trying to make more sensible decisions, the manner in which they have gone about doing what are, by and large, the right things, has added to the inevitable turbulence such a shift brings with itself.

Nevertheless, mistakes mean United will take more time than usual to stabilise, and right now things are as promising as they can get. Carrick, a veritable club legend, has the team playing well and winning again. That gets the fans on side, the players on side, and offers the hierarchy upstairs time to do their due diligence.

If INEOS are to take United back to their pre-2013 levels of domestic dominance and continental contention, they could hardly have asked for a better platform than the one they now have, especially after kicking things off in the manner in which they did.

Players buying into the project

Delwyn

A big feature of this revival under Carrick has been the total buy-in from the players to his cause. It is very difficult to get your players to trust you completely in such a small amount of time, but the former Man United man has done that to brilliant effect.

In a squad that has big characters and even bigger egos, Carrick’s ability to stay boring has been a decisive factor in ensuring that the team remain fully invested in the immediate goal for this season, and that is to finish in the top four and get Champions League football.

Matheus Cunha, Kobbie Mainoo, Benjamin Šeško, and Joshua Zirkzee are the biggest examples of the point I am trying to make. There was shock and questions after it was revealed before the Manchester Derby that Cunha and Šeško were benched. But the move paid rich dividends, with Cunha playing a crucial role from the bench by assisting Patrick Dorgu, and then scoring the winner in the next game against Arsenal, once again from the bench. 

Kobbie Mainoo is the biggest example. From being on the verge of getting a loan move to making three straight starts in the league and also playing a crucial role in all those games, Carrick has ensured that Mainoo is a key cog in the wheel for the Red Devils so far, while even Šeško has reaped the benefits of the same. 

Anshuman

From what has been reported since his dismissal, Ruben Amorim had been demanding more freedom to do his thing. This would have been hard enough in an environment where the sporting director did not directly vouch for your employment; it’s even harder when you haven’t delivered results convincing enough to earn the benefit of the doubt.

It’s not unusual for managers to make harsh calls when it comes to dropping players who are otherwise dear to other players and the fan base, but only those who have delivered results in the past and go on to deliver results on the back of these hard calls are spared criticism — and even then only just.

Amorim undeniably did a sensational job at helping Sporting return to the Primeira Liga summit after nearly two decades, but at United he was demanding more than he could demonstrate, and the results that did arrive under him were not helpful for his case. Even though I feel the argument regarding Amorim’s tactical rigidity was a bit overblown, tactical rigidity was still very much in the mix, with the Portuguese coach demanding more faith than he’d earned.

In victory, Amorim’s United were unconvincing; in defeat, they were indisputably outclassed. When you make hard calls, you have to back them with results. Amorim did not. So this was only going to go one way, and when he left, few tears were shared both inside and outside Old Trafford.

Carrick, on the other hand, unlike Amorim, is more well regarded for his tactical flexibility. Arriving with a short-term mandate, he has kept things simple, sticking to a setup that comes easily to most players, and the very fact that he isn’t Amorim has brought back into the fold several key players. The subsequent results have only gone on to earn him more trust in the here and now than was ever afforded to Amorim, and understandably so.

Carrick is proving to be tactically astute, making tweaks and subs at the right time — different from his recent predecessors

Delwyn

One refreshing aspect to come out of this good start for United and Carrick’s second tenure at the club is his tactical nous and how astute he is at reading the game. Being a thinking and intelligent player himself, he has transferred those skills into his managerial approach, and that shows in the way he has approached each game from a tactical standpoint.

To begin with, Carrick has played every player in the right position while also reverting the formation to a back four, which is more comfortable for most players. In putting Bruno [Fernandes] at No. 10, Dalot in his original position, and using a midfield three of Casemiro, Kobbie Mainoo, and Bruno, he has picked his playing XI based on the opponents and has reaped the benefits of his calls.

Carrick, as a player, played under some top coaches, and his experience under each manager has reflected in the way he has got Man United playing. The possession patterns and the small give-and-goes, the rondos, and keeping the ball with an intent to attack is straight out of the Louis van Gaal playbook. The counter-attacks with pace, power, and precision that saw goals against Manchester City (Bryan Mbeumo) and Arsenal (Matheus Cunha) were typical José Mourinho. And, of course, the hallmarks of Sir Alex Ferguson are present in the way the players press and try to attack on the front foot, along with that Šeško goal that so fondly evoked the “Fergie time” memories.

His substitutions have also been more on the proactive side, with him making like-for-like changes and, more importantly, making them at the right time. All these characteristics just go on to show how nuanced and intelligent he is as a coach.

Anshuman

Both Ten Hag and Amorim had an idea of the kind of football they wanted to play, but when the results don’t follow, even the most attractive brands of football look and feel undesirable.

His Middlesbrough stint might not have culminated in the sensational triumph the early weeks had promised, but what Carrick demonstrated in that time — and during his previous interim stint at United — has firmly established the Englishman as a coach who deserves his shot at management.

At its peak, Carrick’s football embodies the same calm and composure he did as a player. With players exuding confidence and comfort with the ball at their feet, intuitively creative players are finding their own patterns to move the ball around, with defenders under no pressure to make things complicated.

Often the first thing interim coaches do is scrap whatever the predecessor had been up to. When Ole Gunnar Solskjær arrived after José Mourinho’s dismissal, he took the approach of making players feel better about being in the dressing room and hoped that would uplift the football, which it did. Carrick seems to have gone about matters the other way around, and the good football and even more positive results have brought the dressing room together until at least the end of the season.

Simplicity is often regarded as sub-par, but in predicaments the kind of which Carrick finds himself in, doing the basic things the right way can often prove to be the building blocks for doing better, less simple things.

If results continue to be positive, should Carrick get the job permanently?

Delwyn

Now this is one area where I find myself in a bit of a sticky wicket. 

I would be the happiest if Carrick gets us into the top four and fulfils his objectives for the season. But I would think twice before giving him the reins of the club on a permanent basis. I have seen the Ole [Gunnar Solskjær] decision, and how things spiralled towards the end of that season after what was a barnstorming start by him as well after his interim appointment.

I believe that, if the club decides to appoint a different manager, then he should have similarities in the way that Carrick has got this side playing, therefore making it that much simpler for the new manager and the players to achieve symphony and a synergy that will make things easier for everyone involved. 

Should Carrick get the job permanently? I’m not really sure, but stranger things have happened in football.

Anshuman

To put it bluntly, no.

Fan culture is an indelible part of football that deserves more respect and recognition. But equally true is the fact that the decision-makers at any club cannot make their decisions purely on the basis of whether a coach vibes with the community.

When you’re at a club as big as United, outside noise permeating inside the club is inevitable. The key is not to ignore it, but to make your decisions despite it. There may even be club legends once again heralding mutiny if Carrick does not get the job even after delivering Champions League football, but as long as they are not part of the club, theirs is not the opinion that should dictate the decision.

We have four wins on the trot, and whatever happens in the subsequent games, United are in the driving seat for a Champions League spot for next season, even more so given the likelihood of England earning a fifth Champions League spot again.

While a top-four finish ought to bring Carrick firmly into contention for the permanent role, that alone should not be the basis on which he’s handed the full-time gig.

We do not know how Carrick will react to adversity. After beating Man City and Arsenal, United are going to go into every game till the end of the season as the likelier side to grab all three points, but at some point this winning run will come to an end. The simple, free-flowing passes will stop, and both players and the coach will struggle to break a low block or two. The good vibes will subside.

When we look at how his time at Middlesbrough came to an end, the very things that Carrick has been praised for in recent weeks are things that disappeared towards the end of his tenure at the Riverside. This can hint at him having learned from his mistakes, especially with better players at his disposal, but this may also hint at him struggling with proactive decision-making once the honeymoon period is over, and when the results stop coming on their own.

Ultimately, the powers that be at United should look at things closely. Jason Wilcox seems to have struck a positive chord with Sir Jim Ratcliffe, but he has also admitted that he’s prone to intervening in a coach’s training regimen; that’s not a good sign. Few coaches would stand for this, especially in the long term, so how Wilcox navigates what can potentially prove to be a fatal flaw will be interesting. If he fails, United will once again attract criticism for mismanaging the hierarchy upwards, and once again it would be fully deserved.

Wilcox’s predecessor, Dan Ashworth, was reportedly not heavily involved in either the extension of Erik ten Hag’s contract, or the appointment of Ruben Amorim. That set the stage for prolonged turbulence, so if Ratcliffe has decided to stick with Wilcox, then the 54-year-old needs to be the one who spearheads the search, and that search needs to crystallise into a coach who is willing to work with him in the long term — be it Carrick or someone else.

It’s a pretty good time to be a United fan, and after a few years of turgid mediocrity, it’s hard to begrudge the feeling of jubilation from a neutral standpoint. But good vibes don’t bring good decisions in and of themselves, and it’s the lack of sustained good decision-making that has brought United down from continental relevance to domestic mediocrity.

If INEOS can demonstrate some good decision-making, then it becomes irrelevant as to whether Michael “good vibes” Carrick remains at the club next season. It’s the good work in the background, and that alone, that can truly bring the good times back to Old Trafford.