Manchester United are 13th in the Premier League, having taken four points from their first four games: a 2-0 defeat at Hull, 5-2 win against Ipswich, 2-2 draw at Everton and the 1-0 defeat by Manchester City on Sunday. Mitigation regarding the City reverse can be found in the derby coming three days after the Champions League win against Sabah on Thursday, with Enzo Maresca’s side having 48 hours more rest after winning at Porto. So are United, who host Brighton in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday before visiting Fulham in the league on Sunday, as poor as the table suggests?
Is Carrick becoming the new Solskjær?
After Ole Gunnar Solskjær was appointed as temporary manager in December 2018 as a result of José Mourinho’s tempestuous tenure, he won 14 of 19 games and took over permanently in March 2019. What followed was a nosedive of two victories from 10 matches and United ended in sixth – the position when Solskjær arrived. Carrick revived the club’s fortunes as the interim coach last season after Ruben Amorim’s meltdown and sacking, and guided United to third. Yet after assuming the permanent role results have worsened. Just because Solskjær had an unstable team and was never secure in the job (being sacked in November 2021) does not mean his former teammate and assistant will have a similar experience. But how many more poor results is Carrick away from Jason Wilcox being accused of hastily appointing another popular former United player? A clue that the director of football may have had reservations regarding Carrick may lie in the brevity of the contract given to him: it runs to 2028.
A troubling passiveness
When Phil Foden was sent off after 23 minutes at Old Trafford on Sunday, United had a man advantage over City. But Carrick’s men remained becalmed, the Kobbie Mainoo-Youri Tielemans central axis unable to exert control and create chances for the front four of Bruno Fernandes, Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Marcus Rashford. For the first time in 12 home Premier League games under Carrick, United generated less than 1.0 xG (0.95), which should be more of a concern for Carrick than the quasi-farcical video assistant referee decision that allowed Erling Haaland’s winner (Enzo Fernández was, as Pro Ref later admitted, interfering with play). The same issue was evident in the opening defeat at Hull, where Andrey Santos partnered Tielemans, there was close to zero goal threat and Carrick’s side were a portrait of passiveness.
No new left-back starting to bite
You have to wonder why a summer window-long interest in a left-back that included Newcastle’s Lewis Hall (the No 1 target), Arsenal’s Myles Lewis-Skelly and RB Leipzig’s David Raum drew a blank. Identifying that a position needs strengthening, then failing to do so, seems amateurish and cannot have delighted Carrick. Instead, three midfielders were bought: Tielemans, Santos and Carlos Baleba. With Mainoo and Manuel Ugarte (who has a long-term injury) in the squad, a case can be made that this was one too many recruits for the engine room. Instead, the finance for, say, Santos (£48m + £2m) could have been invested at left-back. Four games into the season the potential folly of this was underlined. Luke Shaw, the first-choice left-back, whose career is injury-plagued, was unavailable for City’s visit owing to a knock and Carrick was forced to field a stopgap in Patrick Dorgu. In last season’s corresponding fixture the Dane played as the wide-left forward – and scored. On Sunday, when Josko Gvardiol crossed from United’s right for Haaland to net at the far post, Dorgu was the player challenging the Croat, instead of being in his left-sided defensive zone to mark City’s centre-forward. It was also Dorgu’s errant header that handed City the ball to allow the attack to be launched.
United’s summer signings need to start working
For a £148m investment United acquired Santos, Tielemans (£35m) and Carlos Baleba (£65m). The net result so far? A single start for Santos (the Hull loss) and anonymity from Tielemans, who has been in the XI for all four league matches. Then you come to Baleba, the headline acquisition, who is yet to kick a ball owing to injury, the Cameroonian not expected back until after the international break. In this early season phase none of this would matter if results were rosier. During an interview at United’s County Kildare pre-season training camp in August Tielemans admitted no other clubs were interested in triggering his £35m release clause at Aston Villa. As United attempt to jump-start their campaign, Belgium’s captain needs to offer more – as a player and leader.
Time for Sesko to start?
Benjamin Sesko returned from injury as the season started and has made substitute appearances in all United’s league matches, plus a start at home to Sabah, against whom he scored. The Slovenian also got a goal in the 2-2 draw at Everton, making him United’s joint-third-highest scorer in the league, behind Bruno Fernandes (three) and Bryan Mbeumo (two). Matheus Cunha and Marcus Rashford have zero strikes in the league from four and three starts respectively, and Sesko’s directness as a natural No 9 may be an option worth exploring from kick-off at Fulham.