One of Michael Carrick’s Manchester United players will be crucial to the club for years to come, despite some fear he could leave.
Since Michael Carrick took charge of Manchester United, fans have called for the former midfielder to be handed the full-time position at the end of the season. While these calls have died down following recent performances, Carrick keeps impressing at Old Trafford with his style of football.
Several players have been key to how Carrick likes to play at Old Trafford. Patrick Dorgu was seen as one of, if not the best, player under the new head coach until his injury against Arsenal, as was Lisandro Martínez before his absence led to Leny Yoro’s return to the starting lineup.
Despite their injuries, United have still performed well with six wins from eight games under Carrick. While the Newcastle United result will be a disappointment, especially considering they were down to 10-men before halftime, United’s form now remains much better than it was in Rúben Amorim’s tenure at the club.
For the last two games, Benjamin Šeško has been rewarded with a starting spot, having not played from the start since Darren Fletcher’s two-game stint in charge of the club. This forced Amad to the bench, with Matheus Cunha playing from the left and Bryan Mbeumo from the right.
Amad was among the better players under Amorim and has impressed for Carrick, but struggled in his last start against Everton at the Hill Dickinson Stadium. Later on social media, Amad said: “What is meant to grow does not stay in the same place forever,” leaving some fans concerned he could leave the club in the summer transfer window.
United’s Amad transfer plan
Under Amorim, Amad was almost a guaranteed starter at right-wing-back, but the formation change has put his future into question, as he will have to compete for gametime with Mbeumo, who scored 20 goals in the Premier League last season.
When asked about Amad’s Old Trafford future, transfer specialist Pete O’Rourke told the Transfer Insider podcast: “Amad is highly-regarded at Old Trafford.
“He’s been a regular in the side this season as well and he has been since Michael Carrick took charge, but he was just left out against Palace and Newcastle. That was due to the form of Benjamin Sesko, Carrick felt like he needed to get Sesko into the team and Amad was the one to drop out of the starting lineup.
“But he came off the bench in both games and I don’t think there’s any concern that he could possibly leave Man United any time soon.
“He’s under a long-term contract until 2030 and he’s probably the only out-and-out winger they’ve got in the squad at the moment as well.
“So I don’t think United are planning to let him leave any time soon, he is seen as the future of the club and has a key role to play going forward.”
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How can Carrick play Amad and Mbeumo?
In the first six months of the season, the majority of United’s success came from Amad and Mbeumo combining on the right flank. The formation change has rendered that impossible, but that isn’t to say they couldn’t combine elsewhere on the pitch.
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Before Šeško pushed himself into the starting side, Mbeumo started as the centre-forward, with Amad on the right wing. This allowed the duo to combine more centrally, but with Šeško starting, Mbeumo can’t play through the middle.
Mbeumo has played minutes on the left flank this season, and this could be a real solution to get both Amad and the Cameroon international into the XI, but they’ll be on opposite flanks, meaning any interplay would be very rare.
The only real solution would be to play Amad or Mbeumo as the No.10, with the other on the right flank. Bruno Fernandes would be forced to the left wing, which could work if the left-back held the width, but Dorgu’s injury means this is unlikely to be trialled soon, especially if Luke Shaw is out, too.
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