Alan Shearer has made an interesting point about Manchester United’s upcoming clash against Arsenal after praising Michael Carrick.
Michael Carrick could not have asked for a better start as Manchester United’s caretaker head coach, guiding his side to an emphatic derby victory over Manchester City on Saturday afternoon.
A 2–0 win at Old Trafford marked United’s third clean sheet of the season, with the scoreline flattering City after three further United goals were ruled out for narrow offside decisions.
Despite the heightened atmosphere and heavy scrutiny surrounding the contest, Carrick outmanoeuvred Pep Guardiola and inspired a disciplined, eye-catching performance from the Reds.
United will now look to build on that momentum when they travel to the Emirates Stadium on Sunday to face league leaders Arsenal.
Shearer praises Carrick’s start
Carrick’s first game as United boss this term impressed many fans and pundits, including ex-Newcastle striker Alan Shearer.
The Premier League’s all-time top scorer admitted he was ‘hugely impressed’ by Carrick’s team in their victory against City and suggested that United’s energy and aggression was ‘incredible’ in the game.
“I was hugely impressed by Michael Carrick’s Manchester United,” Shearer told Betfair. “It couldn’t have gone any better against Manchester City.
“He’d been in the club three days and made little tweaks to the system. Penny for the thoughts of Rúben Amorim watching that performance. It was like someone flipped a switch. The energy and aggression United showed were incredible.
“That has to be the norm now. You need a little luck, getting Bryan Mbeumo and Amad Diallo back just in time, and Dalot not getting sent off, but the performance level was key.”
Shearer makes interesting point about United vs Arsenal
United now face a tougher test against Arsenal but Shearer does not think Carrick’s side should enter the game scared, and instead must show the same appetite they had against City.
But interestingly, Shearer has also pointed out that a defeat would not be the end of the world against the league-leaders as United would have been happy with two points out of the games against City and Arsenal.
“United have got Arsenal this weekend, which is a shift from City, but that shouldn’t faze them. United have always had big results in big games, but they lacked the big performance. Last week was both,” added Shearer.
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“Whether they can go to Arsenal and win is a different matter, but if they show the same appetite, they’ll be fine. Even two draws against City and Arsenal would have been good, but now they’ve got three points in the bank.”
It is a good point from Shearer, and United will be focused on producing a good performance and then seeing what happens on Sunday. A win would be another massive result but it is almost a free hit for the Reds right now after securing an unexpected three points last weekend.
Carrick will not be thinking like that, however, and will be hoping that his team can carry on building momentum. A win against the Gunners would be huge for the confidence and moral of the squad.
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