Michael Carrick’s future as Manchester United manager has come under fresh scrutiny after his side suffered a damaging 2-0 Premier League defeat to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
United squandered several opportunities to take the lead before Morgan Rogers broke the deadlock in the 50th minute, driving through the heart of their defence before calmly lifting the ball over goalkeeper Senne Lammens.
Lisandro Martinez compounded United’s misery by receiving two quickfire yellow cards, with his dismissal also resulting in a penalty that Cole Palmer converted to seal Chelsea’s victory.
The defeat leaves the 20-time English champions winless in nine matches and just one point above the relegation zone, with the possibility of ending the weekend in the bottom three.
Carrick had been widely expected to lose his job following last weekend’s 3-0 home defeat to Bournemouth. However, the former United midfielder was given another opportunity to turn the team’s fortunes around.
He will now rue his side’s failure to make their first-half dominance count.
Carrick recalled captain Bruno Fernandes after dropping him for last weekend’s game following the midfielder’s criticism of his manager’s tactics during a 4-1 defeat at Como in the Champions League.
Fernandes had an opportunity to mark his return with a goal but blazed over from Bryan Mbeumo’s inviting cross.
The pair then combined again, with Mbeumo unable to stretch far enough to connect with Fernandes’s delivery at the far post. Amad Diallo also twice tested Chelsea’s stand-in goalkeeper, Mike Penders.
United eventually thought they had taken the lead when Matheus Cunha turned in Harry Maguire’s header from a corner, but the Brazilian’s effort was ruled out for offside.
Carrick struggled to hide his frustration during a half-time interview with broadcasters, and his mood worsened after a disastrous start to the second half.
Martinez red card compounds United’s misery
Rogers, who credited Carrick with helping revive his career during their time together at Middlesbrough, dealt his former manager a potentially decisive blow.
The England international collected the ball near the centre circle and was allowed to advance towards United’s goal largely unchallenged before delicately lifting it over Lammens to give Chelsea the lead.
Martinez, who had recently criticised United’s lack of investment in the transfer market to strengthen Carrick’s squad, was also involved in the decisive moments that followed.
The Argentine defender struggled to contain Rogers’s physicality and was penalised for pulling back the Chelsea forward shortly after the opening goal.
Matters went from bad to worse when Martinez needlessly caught Wesley Fofana with a raised forearm from the resulting free-kick.
Following a VAR review, referee Peter Banks awarded Chelsea a penalty and showed Martinez a second yellow card, leaving United with 10 men.
Palmer stepped up to convert the spot-kick. Although Lammens got a hand to his effort, the ball trickled into the bottom corner to make it 2-0.
Chelsea substitute Estevao thought he had added a third with a powerful finish into the top corner from Palmer’s pass, but the effort was ruled out for offside.
With United struggling to respond, Chelsea fans taunted Carrick with chants of “sacked in the morning” as their side controlled the closing stages without adding to their advantage.
United’s hierarchy now faces another major decision ahead of Tuesday’s crucial Champions League encounter against Roma at Old Trafford.
Having lost two of their three European matches so far, United risk the embarrassment and financial consequences of an early exit if they suffer another defeat against the Italian side.
AFP
