Increasingly under pressure, Michael Carrick has sparked a huge reaction among Manchester United fans after what he did immediately following the Red Devils’ 4-1 defeat to Como in the Champions League on Wednesday night.
United have now extended their winless run to seven matches, and you’d have to go back as far as September 21 to find the last time they avoided dropping points. It took just two minutes for their hosts to draw first blood, with Nico Paz opening the scoring.
The young Argentine would go on to grab his second of the night just before the hour mark, with his strike sandwiched between further goals from Jacobo Ramon and Anastasios Douvikas as Como ran riot under the floodlights.
Joshua Zirkzee came off the bench to score a consolation goal in the 91st minute, but it was little more than a drop in the ocean, doing nowhere near enough to spare the Red Devils’ blushes as they continue to endure their worst start to a season since 1986.
What Michael Carrick Did At Full-Time After Como 4-1 United
Who is really to blame for United’s sharp decline since the back end of last season – when Carrick managed to win more points in the second half of the 2025/26 campaign than any other Premier League rival – is a matter of debate.
Some, including Lisandro Martinez, have pointed the finger at the hierarchy over a lack of investment, while others are beginning to fear that a breakdown in trust between the manager and his players could be brewing behind the scenes.
United fans have claimed that Bruno Fernandes no longer wants to play for Carrick, while the manager’s actions at full-time have only added fuel to the fire, raising questions over whether the feeling might be mutual. As Manchester Evening News journalist Tyrone Marshall reported (watch the footage below):
“Michael Carrick ignores every single Manchester United player as he goes to the away end to apologise at full-time. Then marches straight down the tunnel. He looks furious.”
The eye-opening footage has sparked a big reaction on social media, as one X user remarked: “Carrick shouldn’t apologise. It should be [Jason] Wilcox, Jim [Ratcliffe], and the players,” as a second added:
“The entire establishment needs to be torn apart and rebuilt. This toxic culture, this absolute lack of planning and tactics, the lack of heart in the team… So bad.”
A third wrote: “It’s not his fault, it’s the attitude of certain players that’s always been the problem,” as a fourth concluded: “I don’t blame him, they need to take more responsibility.”
The Clock is Ticking For Carrick – A Worrying Inevitability
Whether it’s Carrick’s fault or not, time is now rapidly running out of time for him to cling on to his position in what’s popularly coined football’s most stressful job.
It is, by all intents and purposes, far easier for his higher-ups to hit the rest button on his job rather than that of the players, and the retired midfielder accepted that responsibility in his post-match press conference.
More to follow…
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