Manchester United drawing 1-1 with Leeds United has prompted Gary Neville to warn Michael Carrick about when he will have a problem if their poor form continues
Gary Neville says Michael Carrick will have a problem if Manchester United are still struggling in December or January and believes their fortunes will have to change in the next few weeks.
After drawing 1-1 with Leeds United, the club are 13th in the Premier League table after winning just one of their opening seven matches. Carrick's side are now on a six-game winless run which stretches back to the 4-0 win over Sabah at Old Trafford.
Neville considers their next league match against Bournemouth to be vitally important. However, he now deems the 1-1 draw a positive step forward.
Speaking on The Gary Neville Podcast, the Sky Sports pundit said: "[There's] a depressed standard and a low expectation right now. But it'll feel like a stepping stone for Michael Carrick, and it'll feel like the first step on the ladder in the Premier League.
"They may take some confidence from that, and there might be a blueprint there, maybe we have to bring Matheus Cunha, Marcus Rashford and others off the bench, and we might just have to have a go at being more solid."
Cunha only made a late cameo at Elland Road. Rashford did not even feature.
Looking longer-term, Neville said: "I would say fourth would be a birdie, fifth would be par, and sixth would be a bogey.
"But they can't finish outside the top five because then you're missing out on the Champions League, and it becomes a vicious circle. You can't get those players because they want to play in the Champions League, and you can't get the money from it, and you've lost the £60m-£70m, and you're in the Europa League on Thursday nights.
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"Fifth is a must for Michael Carrick to continue to grow and Manchester United continue to grow with investment.
"If they're 13th in January, he's got a problem because then you are what you are, whereas I think it's still early enough, seven points from seven games, to say, 'OK, still early in the season'; you can't say that after 15 games.
"It has to change in the next few weeks: Bournemouth is really important, and Chelsea away, and how he manages the games in between that.
"You've got to say fifth; you know that anything less than fifth is going to be a disappointment and a drop in standard from the start of the season, where everybody expected them to finish, and at the moment, they're well short of that because you look at Brighton, Liverpool, Aston Villa - they look like they're picking up a little bit, it's difficult."