Carrick's six failures: MU's inefficient attack, aging defense, and over-reliance on Bruno Fernandes

Manchester United's poor performance this season has put manager Michael Carrick's job at serious risk, with the team currently sitting 16th in the Premier League—their worst league position since the 1986/87 season. The Mirror analyzed the reasons why Carrick should be sacked.

Manchester United is in turmoil once again, and it may cost Carrick his job. Sunday's devastating 3-0 loss to AFC Bournemouth at Old Trafford was the final straw, following an even worse 4-1 defeat to Como. Manchester United currently sits 16th in the Premier League, having won only two of their 12 games this season—against Ipswich Town and Sabah. After overseeing a resurgence last season following Amorim's departure, Carrick immediately ran into trouble after being appointed permanent manager.

Transfer Oversight

The problems were evident even before the season began. Manchester United focused their summer transfer efforts on midfield, spending £155 million on Tielemans, Andrey Santos, and Carlos Baleba while neglecting other areas. Failing to sign a left-back to provide cover and competition for Luke Shaw was a clear mistake—one everyone recognized, including Carrick himself, who offered only diplomatic responses when questioned about it. When it became clear that Lewis Hall's move from Newcastle United was impossible, the club should have pursued other targets. By the end of Sunday's match, Dalot was completely exposed on the left flank. Similarly, the failure to secure a center-forward during Benjamin Šeško's injury absence proved disastrous, leaving Manchester United without a focal point in attack.

Lack of Running

Gary Neville was furious after Manchester United's 1-1 draw with Fulham last month, calling the players' walking on the pitch an "absolute disgrace." He fumed on Sky Sports after the game: "I've never seen such a lack of running." Statistics support this perception: in seven of their eight Premier League games this season, Manchester United covered less distance than their opponents. The only exception was against Manchester City, who played with ten men for over an hour after Foden's red card. Manchester United ranks 18th in the Premier League for distance covered this season. Carrick disputed this criticism. Before the thrashing by AFC Bournemouth, he said: "Pressing is only a small part of football. People have all sorts of definitions of pressing. What is it exactly? Why do you do it? Is it to play to your strengths? Is it to cover other spaces? You don't necessarily need to press to win football matches. Sometimes you do, sometimes you don't. It's just a word that gets thrown around casually. We have to be careful with that. Running statistics don't necessarily define a football match either." He had a point. From the time Carrick was appointed interim manager in January until the end of the season, only four teams covered less distance than Manchester United, yet they accumulated 39 points from 17 games—the most in the Premier League during that period. The criticism about insufficient running is not new. Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Mourinho, Erik ten Hag, and Amorim have all been forced to address this issue publicly. But eyes don't lie, and Manchester United's players are not running their hearts out for their latest manager.

Aging and Underperforming Defense

What other traditional powerhouse would be comfortable relying so heavily on experienced but past-their-prime defenders like Shaw, Maguire, and De Ligt? Shaw went an entire season without injury last year, but that situation was never likely to last. The moment he was beaten easily by Abdul Fatawu in August, leading to Ipswich Town's opening goal, said it all. This is already his 13th season at Manchester United. Maguire is in his seventh year and well past his peak, as evidenced by Thomas Tuchel's decision not to select him for England. His lack of sharpness is obvious, and De Ligt is even worse—he returned after 11 months out with a back injury and was humiliated by young Como last week. Manchester United's only clean sheet this season came against Sabah, a team founded only nine years ago.

Over-Reliance on Bruno Fernandes

This is nothing new. Since Bruno Fernandes joined in 2020, Manchester United has almost always depended heavily on the Portuguese playmaker for inspiration, and generally, he has delivered. Bruno Fernandes has been remarkably consistent for Manchester United. He is almost never absent, has been a constant source of brilliance, making 338 appearances for the club, scoring 111 goals, and providing 109 assists. Last season, he set the Premier League record for assists in a single campaign. But the burden on his shoulders may ultimately prove too heavy, and this season it has backfired on Manchester United. All four of his goals and one assist came in victories against Ipswich Town and Sabah; Bruno Fernandes failed to contribute in the other nine games this season. Worse still, he broke his silence and publicly criticized the manager after the Como game, leading to him being benched on Sunday. He then liked a provocative social media post, behaving like an emotional teenager.

Wasted Opportunities

Manchester United has the most shots in the Premier League this season with 155, averaging 19 per game, but has scored only 10 goals—five of which came in the 5-2 demolition of Ipswich Town in August. Their expected goals (xG) stand at 12.79, ranking seventh in the Premier League, but their actual output falls significantly short, with a goal difference of -2.79, ranking fourth from bottom, ahead only of Nottingham Forest, Sunderland, and Fulham. Manchester United's shot conversion rate is just 6.45%, ranking 18th in the Premier League. By comparison, Manchester City leads the league at 17.09%. Although Bryan Mbeumo tops Manchester United's scoring charts with four league goals, he has also wasted numerous chances: his 15.38% conversion rate is the worst among the top nine strikers in the Premier League. He is not alone in struggling: Rashford has taken 13 shots without scoring, and Tielemans has failed to score from eight attempts.

Midfield Disconnect

Manchester United gambled on midfield in the summer, with the arrivals of Tielemans, Andrey Santos, and Carlos Baleba triggering a major overhaul. It is still early, but the gamble has not yet paid off. The three have started together in three games—against Atlético Madrid, Leeds United, and AFC Bournemouth—resulting in two losses and one draw. The trio currently lacks proper balance. Carlos Baleba and Andrey Santos are defensive midfielders tasked with filling the void left by Casemiro's departure, while Tielemans was supposed to provide creative drive from the No. 8 position. None of these expectations have been met. Rio Ferdinand's glowing praise for Ayyoub Bouaddi of Manchester City suggests another transfer market misstep for Manchester United. Ferdinand said on a podcast last week: "His transfer fee (£85 million) is the same as Andrey Santos and Tielemans combined. Manchester United were absolutely keen on him, but the fee was simply too high. Just that brief performance against PSG makes you sigh, 'Oh, I can't believe we missed him. I can't believe it.' I'm so upset, so upset." So upset—that pretty much sums up Manchester United's season.