Mainoo performance 'a joy' for Man Utd boss Carrick

Michael Carrick said it is "a joy" to manage Kobbie Mainoo after the Manchester United youngster impressed in their dominant 4-0 Champions League win over Sabah.

Playing their first game in Europe's premier club competition since December 2023, when they suffered a group-stage exit under Erik ten Hag, United were hardly troubled by the Azerbaijani champions at Old Trafford.

Matheus Cunha, Bruno Fernandes, Benjamin Sesko and Lisandro Martinez scored for United, with their only real scare being a glaring miss from Joy-Lance Mickels at 1-0.

The victory made Carrick only the second English manager to win his first two Champions League matches, along with Liam Rosenior last season with Chelsea. 

Carrick's victories have been separated by four years and 291 days, though, as he oversaw a 2-0 win over Villarreal during his first interim spell in November 2021.

After Thursday's game, Carrick reserved particular praise for Mainoo, whose 81 successful passes were the most of any player on the pitch and the most by any Englishman for United in the competitions since Carrick himself (89) versus Panathinaikos in 2014. 

"He's a fantastic player, it's pretty obvious to see," Carrick told TNT Sports of Mainoo, who has started United's last two Premier League games after being benched for their season-opening defeat to Hull City. 

"He has a massive influence on our games. He is a real joy to have, he wants to improve, he wants to listen and it is great to see."

Asked about the overall dynamics of United's midfield, Carrick also highlighted the need for Mason Mount and Andrey Santos to get minutes off the bench.

He said: "We've got really good players. It's nice to get Mason and Andrey in. There are some good connections, and we played some good football through the middle of the pitch.

"A lot of it is about the wavelength and understanding of where each other wants the ball. Just understanding and developing that is something we have done a bit more this season. 

"We haven't had the perfect start but there are really good signs. It's always nice to win the first one at home."

United's attention now turns to the first Manchester derby of the season, as Manchester City visit Old Trafford on Sunday.

United's clean sheet against Sabah was their first of the season, having conceded two goals in each of their first three Premier League matches, losing 2-0 to Hull City, beating Ipswich Town 5-2 and drawing 2-2 with Everton. 

United have only previously started three league campaigns by shipping multiple goals in four straight matches, in 1926-27 (first five), 1930-31 (12) and 1969-70 (four), and full-back Patrick Dorgu knows how important it was for the defence to build some confidence.

"It was good. Really, thank you to God for giving me the opportunity to play in the Champions League," Dorgu said. 

"I'm really happy with my performance, happy that the team got three points, and we're up and running in the Champions League.

"In the last couple of games, we have conceded a lot of goals, so it's good to get some confidence going into the derby at the weekend."