Michael Carrick has struck a defiant tone after Manchester United equalled their worst start to a Premier League season, but a woeful 1-1 draw at Fulham left the beleaguered boss under mounting pressure. Trailing to Lisandro Martinez’s farcical own goal, United were just moments away from a third successive defeat on another dispiriting afternoon for Carrick on Sunday. Matheus Cunha’s deflected 89th-minute equaliser spared United from new humiliation. But escaping with a barely deserved point against a winless side placed second-from-bottom of the Premier League was hardly cause for celebration.
With only one win so far this season, United have matched their lowest points total after five matches in the Premier League era. Sitting in 12th place with five points, Carrick’s men equalled the mark set by Louis van Gaal’s United in 2014-15, when they went on to finish fourth. The statistics are damning enough in their own right, but the eye test during their moribund performance at Craven Cottage provided an even more insightful look at what ails United. Lacking a cutting edge in attack, bereft of defensive organisation and, in the words of Cunha, short of energy and drive until they fell behind, this was the kind of flawed display that has scarred so many United seasons since their last title in 2013.
Carrick was expected to build on last season’s climb to a third-place finish during his spell as interim boss. But having hauled United from the wreckage of Ruben Amorim’s self-destructive reign, Carrick is in danger of losing his way in his first season as permanent boss. A wretched 2-0 defeat at promoted Hull on the opening weekend set alarm bells ringing among the United faithful. Beaten in the Manchester derby by an Erling Haaland goal that should have been disallowed last weekend, United then blew a two-goal lead at home for the first time in 50 years in a League Cup meltdown against Brighton.
Already 10 points behind leaders City, Carrick’s team were so underwhelming against Fulham that even one of the manager’s former teammates took a swipe at United. Commenting on the match for Sky Sports, ex-United defender Gary Neville was scathing in his assessment of their performance at the start of the second half. “I’ve watched Man United since the age of five and that’s the worst 15 minutes I’ve ever seen. Absolutely pathetic,” Neville said. The 51-year-old added: “I’ve never seen such a lack of effort.
What must Carrick be thinking?” Carrick does not have the confrontational personality of some of his United predecessors, but he tried his best to quiet the noise as he searched for reasons for optimism. “It’s not been ideal. It was always going to come at some point, and it’s come at the start of the season,” he said. “On the other side of it, at Everton, a 25-yard shot, top corner for their equaliser. The City goal that’s not a goal. Today, own goal, that’s one of them things. “It’s pretty fine margins that have flipped it.
I know we can do better; we need to do better at certain things. “But I’m not despondent because I think we’ve shown some good signs as well.” Carrick has three weeks to stew on United’s miserable start during an extended international break. Questions about United’s transfer policy and fitness regime are growing louder. The 45-year-old must come up with answers before they return to action with a crucial clash against bottom-of-the-table Tottenham on October 10. Losing to Roberto De Zerbi’s side would be a huge blow to Carrick’s hopes of turning the tide, especially with tricky trips to Atletico Madrid and Leeds looming after Tottenham visit Old Trafford.
But Carrick is putting his faith in United’s players absorbing the lessons from their painful start. “You learn about each other, they learn about me, I learn about the individual and as a team, how we respond, what our reaction is,” he said. “That’s part of growing as a group. You have to go through certain things to get to the end of it.” Carrick said he had “mixed” reactions to the match but was focusing on the positives and bouncing back after this “first chapter”. “There are parts we can do better. The way we responded to going down was really pleasing, the boys were really positive and played with good purpose,” Carrick said in a post-match interview. “I’m convinced we’ll have a good season. We’re having a spell that feels bigger than it actually is to the outside.
We’ll get back to winning football matches and we’ll be all right.”
