Manchester United currently sit 13th in the Premier League, winning only one of their first seven games, and winning none of their last eight games in all competitions. While Manchester United experiencing their worst start to a League campaign in almost 40 years is an obvious concern, what may be even more worrying are the comments made by key players after some of their worst defeats.
The first of these comments came from centre-back Lisandro Martinez following a bitter 2-0 defeat away against Atletico Madrid. In his post-match interview Martinez directly criticised Manchester United’s technical director Jason Wilcox with the player claiming that he expected greater investment to be made into the team. The criticism over the lack of investment has resonated with fans, as Manchester United spent less than 9 other Premier League clubs last summer. Frustrated fans have seen rivals like Manchester City, Liverpool, and Chelsea spend more on individual players than Manchester United’s total net spend in the whole transfer window. Consequently, United had an incomplete squad by the end of the window, already showing clear holes early in the season.
The second comment came from club captain and star player Bruno Fernandes in which he questioned the tactics of the manager and coaching staff following a 4-1 battering against Como in the Champions League, claiming that United let Como control the game and should have been more aggressive off the ball. Furthermore, he claimed that he had suggested this before the game but that the tactics and game plan were “on the manager and on the staff.” Michael Carrick’s tactics have received plenty of criticism already this season, but to have his main man openly questioning him and his coaching staff is the last thing a stressed manager needs.
How fans will receive their captain seemingly turning on his manager has yet to be seen, but there is clear frustration among fans and players alike, and as Manchester United’s poor form continues, and the dressing room seems to be turning on him, the pressure is only mounting on manager Michael Carrick.
Manchester United face a tough run of fixtures until the next international break including a trip to Stamford Bridge, and if Manchester United’s performances do not improve it looks possible that any of these games may be Carrick’s last as manager of the club.
Photo by Nat Callaghan on Unsplash under the Unsplash license.
