Carrick says he will still be in charge of United against Roma after 2-0 loss at Chelsea
Michael Carrick said he would still be in charge when Manchester United face Roma in the Champions League on Tuesday, despite his side's 2-0 defeat at Chelsea on Saturday. The result extended United's winless run to nine games.
Carrick acknowledged the severity of the run and the pressure on his position after overseeing the club's first such sequence since 1988, and he said his focus was already on the midweek fixture while assessing his team's defending when Morgan Rogers opened the scoring. “It’s never a good goal to concede,” he said. “Morgan went through the middle of us and at that point the game was right in the balance. To concede like that was a big moment. I’m just looking forward to getting the boys ready for midweek now.”
United created good chances in the first half but failed to convert a series of clear opportunities, and the side fell apart after going behind. The situation worsened when Lisandro Martínez was sent off for a foul that led to Cole Palmer converting from the penalty spot to make it 2-0.
Carrick declined to single out Martínez for blame after the dismissal. “It was a major part of the game,” he said. “The second goal and losing the man at that stage had a big influence on it.”
Before the afternoon fixtures United were just above the bottom three, and Carrick rejected the idea that the club would be defined by a temporary drop into the relegation zone. “There’s no words I’m going to explain to you now that makes it any different,” he said. “It’s not going to change it. We’ve got to move forward and win matches, it’s as simple as that.”
Asked if his players were ready for a relegation battle, Carrick pointed to the potential to climb the table quickly with wins. “You can look at it like that, and you can look at how far you can move up the league quite quickly if you win football matches,” he said. “That’s the way it's got to be approached.”
Chelsea moved into fourth place overnight and were praised by their manager Xabi Alonso for their second-half response after earlier setbacks in other competitions. “The first half was intense,” Xabi Alonso said. “United had their chances, we were close as well, so at half-time we have spoken and the reaction from the second half was better. “We started quite well, we got the lead, we looked in better control and after 2-0 and the red card the context of the game changed. But it has not been easy.” Alonso also singled out Estêvão Willian after the Brazil winger sparkled on his first start in the league this season. “We spoke after Tottenham and he knew that he was going to be playing today,” the Chelsea manager said. “He has had the best response to show he deserves more, that he was prepared and that’s what you want, so I’m very happy for him.”
United's next fixture is the Champions League meeting with Roma on Tuesday, the match Carrick said he would still oversee.