Michael Carrick reverted to type against Manchester City, but it worked wonders for Manchester United in their dominant display.
Manchester United’s appointment of Michael Carrick as head coach until the end of the season could be easily seen as relying on the old guard yet again. And it will be, by many. But Carrick is a shrewd tactician and has already proven himself capable of beating the best of the best – from the result against Manchester City, if nothing else.
His team selection provided several shocks for the United fan base. Harry Maguire wasn’t expected to return in time to shut down Erling Haaland with Lisandro Martínez; Patrick Dorgu wasn’t expected to start as the left-winger, with Matheus Cunha deemed more likely; and Benjamin Šeško was expected to start as the centre-forward following his goals against Burnley and Brighton.
However, by the end of the game, no United fans were concerned with the selection choice, the formation setup, or the substitutions used. It was a perfect performance from the United head coach, who has interestingly not been named as an “interim”, but rather just a head coach until the end of the season.
Carrick’s time in charge of Middlesbrough – where he was also known as head coach – impressed many throughout the EFL. He took Boro from 21st to fourth in his first season, while he also guided them to a Carabao Cup semi-final in 2023/24, losing out to Chelsea after winning the home tie 1-0.
Many remember Carrick’s setup as a possession-heavy, rigid system, but, in truth, it was anything but. Much as he did against Manchester City on Saturday afternoon, Carrick is willing to give up possession for a solid defensive structure, while allowing his players to be expressive on the counter-attack.
How Carrick’s tactics will look going forward
As he did during his first stint at Old Trafford – following Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s sacking – Carrick’s side lined up in a 4-2-3-1 shape with the ball, and a 4-4-2 without. This will continue going forward, but against sides that won’t have the majority of the possession, United fans are likely to see a 3-2-5 structure in the attacking areas.
Bryan Mbeumo started the Manchester derby as the centre-forward due to his defensive discipline and willingness to wait in a set structure before beginning the press. Carrick likes to make his sides difficult to play through before pouncing on a mistake, as United nearly did when Max Alleyne played a poor back pass in the first half – without Gianluigi Donnarumma’s high starting position, it would’ve been 1-0 earlier on.
Another key feature of Carrick’s out-of-possession setup is the role of the wide players. Amad and Patrick Dorgu were responsible for tracking back and supporting their full-back to deal with City’s dangerous wide players: Jeremy Doku and Antoine Semenyo. Their positioning forced City to play backwards more often, leading to more mistakes when playing out, such as Alleyne’s.
With the ball, Carrick can ask his sides to dominate possession and take control of the game, but that isn’t always the case. Against Manchester City, Carrick asked his midfield to tilt the pitch in an overload to isolate method. Kobbie Mainoo would often drift over to the left-hand side with Bruno Fernandes to combine with Dorgu and Luke Shaw, before turning and switching play to Amad on the right. United also found themselves able to hold possession on the wing due to Mainoo’s press-proof play.
The intelligent play in midfield often left United’s wide players in one-on-one situations against their full-backs at pace. Amad and Dorgu would receive the ball and immediately drive at their defender before putting a cross into the box or getting a shot off. Casemiro came close to scoring from exactly this, while Dorgu netted the second goal of the game following Cunha’s successful one-on-one.
How will Carrick set up going forward?
While it was a brilliant performance – one of the best Old Trafford has seen in a long time – Carrick won’t be able to set his team up like that in every game. Against Arsenal, they may play in a very similar fashion, but Šeško may come back into the side to deal with the aerial threat from Mikel Arteta’s side.
After Arsenal, however, United face Fulham, Tottenham and West Ham United. Spurs will take the game to United, but the other two Premier League sides will allow United to dominate possession and could sit in a low block. Under Rúben Amorim, United found it almost impossible to break down a deep defensive line, so how will Carrick deal with it?
Noussair Mazraoui could replace Diogo Dalot due to the poor performances from the Portuguese – he was lucky not to be sent off against City for a dangerous tackle on Jeremy Doku. He could be the defender to invert into central defence, allowing Shaw or Dorgu to push on and provide the width on the left-hand side. Though Mazraoui will still join the attack, his involvement will come much later in the attacking phase.
Casemiro and Mainoo are likely to be the partnership going forward, as they should’ve been under Amorim. Mainoo’s free role – drifting across the pitch, as he did against City – will be crucial in progressing play from midfield to attack, something Amorim was sorely missing with Mainoo on the bench.
The five ahead will be made up of the left-back, the left-winger (Matheus Cunha or Mason Mount), who will drift inside, Fernandes and Amad. Mbeumo could be dropped back to the left wing if Carrick wants more crosses into the box, with Šeško the bigger aerial threat.
On paper, the attacking lineup is very similar to how Amorim would play, but Carrick’s movement instructions and fresh ideas will look like a vast difference to the former head coach’s side.
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