Was a point enough for Michael Carrick? | Football Weekly
Was a point enough for Carrick? United's performance and tactics spark debate
The show discusses Manchester United's point at Elland Road, focusing on Carrick's midfield changes, the fit of Bruno Fernandes and Tielemans, Maguire's lack of pace and the team's broader chaos. There is no consensus: one view says the point was acceptable, while others call United pathetic and argue Leeds missed a real opportunity, criticising United's lack of a clear plan.
- United's point at Elland Road was a decent enough performance and result — Carrick changed things and stiffened the midfield; Tielemans played on the right and set up the goal, freeing Bruno, and if United had played as they did in some earlier Premier League games, especially against Spurs, they would have lost.
- I do not know what Manchester United are trying to do, and the midfield still lacks mobility and legs — Injuries make it hard to judge, but Santos is technically good without enough coverage, Tielemans has similar issues, and Bruno makes a balanced midfield three difficult; the front line could be fluid, but Bruno does not fit it.
- United's approach is needlessly complicated; they should have signed a more aggressive ball-winning midfielder and a traditional centre-forward — A simpler setup with Bruno Fernandes ahead of a ball-winner plus a proper striker to support the injury-prone Šeško would make more sense.
- Maguire is United's best out-and-out defender, but he is so slow that the team has to play differently when he is in it — His lack of pace forces a different defensive setup, even if he can still deal with crosses.
- Manchester United were pathetic, and Leeds missed a real opportunity — United were disjointed and messy; keeping Yoro at right back while bringing on a right back to play centre-back made no sense, and Dalot at left back was another patchwork choice.
- People should accept that this is what United are and stop getting angry; Leeds have a clear plan and identity, while United do not — Several defenders were playing away from their usual positions, Yoro defended okay at right back but offered nothing going forward, and United keep showing the same problems.
- Calvert-Lewin could be England's second-choice striker behind Kane — He is fit, leading the line and scoring, and there are few England forwards available beyond Kane.
Speculation swirls that Michael Carrick is facing the chop after Manchester United's worst start to a season for 40 years, but was it actually a well-earned point at Leeds? Max Rushden is joined by Jonathan Wilson, Dan Bardell and Mark Langdon to discuss what went down at Elland Road Watch the full podcast episode ► https://youtu.be/UKVwj-fvwwk Subscribe to Guardian Football ► https://www.youtube.com/@guardianfootball?subconfirmation=1 We want your feedback! If you had any thoughts on our coverage of the World Cup, please let us know here ► www.theguardian.com/YTWorldCupSurvey The Guardian publishes independent journalism, made possible by supporters. Contribute to The Guardian today ► https://support.theguardian.com/ Guardian Football Weekly: https://www.tiktok.com/@guardianfootballweekly https://www.instagram.com/guardianfootballweekly/ Website ► https://www.theguardian.com Facebook ► https://www.facebook.com/theguardian Bluesky ► https://bsky.app/profile/sport.theguardian.com Instagram ► https://www.instagram.com/guardiansport/ The Guardian on YouTube: The Guardian ► https://www.youtube.com/@theguardian Football Weekly podcast ► https://www.youtube.com/@footballweeklypodcast Guardian News ► https://www.youtube.com/@guardiannews Guardian Australia ► https://www.youtube.com/@guardianaustralia Guardian Sport ► https://www.youtube.com/@guardiansport
Transcript
leads one, Manchester United won. Uh, pretty good game this I thought. Mark, um, I mean, there were lots of pretty good games. It's quite hard to work out a running order after Brighton's win in this pod. >> What did you make of it? >> I I didn't think it was that good a game. I have to say, Max, I was expecting you to come in more negatively. So, you put me on the back foot there. I I thought that United there was a lot of noise around the team after the Sandra Martinez and and kind of you the form they've been on. So to go away to Ellen Road and to pick up a point like while Manchester United would sort of never really be should be settling for a point um at least I think it was a a decent enough performance and a decent enough result like Carrick did change things and he did try to stiffen up the midfield and maybe not everybody's playing in in the perfect position but you had Tielemans playing to the right and he did set up um the goal and it enabled Bruno Fernando and to be more of a a luxury player to have the two in Bibra and Santos that were were sitting because had they played like they had in sort of the other some of them Premier League games the Spurs one particularly like I think they would have lost the game so he has tried something different they've got quite a lot of injuries maybe this just is who Manchester United are we we just we we might just be overrating them as we have done for sort of 15 20 years and if this is what they are then I think it's a good result. >> Yeah. Um I mean a lot of question Wilson about what Manchester United are trying to do. Do we did we see more of that yesterday? >> I don't know what they're trying to do. I mean you the injuries make it difficult to tell but you look at the midfielders they've bought and believe is the only one who's sort of really got the sort of mobility and the energy to to get about and make tackles. That seems to been a problem in the United midfield for years. Yeah. Yeah, Andre Santos technically very good but not you know you saw Chelsea repeatedly you know he's not it's enough legs to get about that's the problem with Mayu Tieleman's the problem with him I think if you're playing a midfield three with some combination of them he'll be fine but you can't really do that if you got Bruno Fernandez which is probably why he played out on the right against Atletico midweek so it feels like and equally with the forward line you could put together quite a good front three who can sort of interchange constantly and the mobility, the fluidity will be will be their strength. But I don't know where Brena Fernandez fits in that. Sabrina Fernandez feels like he doesn't fit with the other things they've done with the forward line in the midfield. So I'm not really sure what they are trying to do. I mean that that's sort of playing almost with two false nines yesterday. So it would seem to be what they were trying to do. Maybe that is a way around, but it seems like a a needlessly complicated way to play when you could have just signed, you know, a more sort of aggressive ball-winning midfielder to play in a two with Fernan in front of him. I also signed a more traditional center forward to supplement Shashesko who's seems always to be injured. >> Yeah. And Ble I thought was at fault for the goal actually. He he was on his heels and left Calvin Leuen. Um, I mean, Barney made the point as well, you know, Harry Magguire is, you know, their best straight defender, but he is so slow that you just have to play differently if you have Meguire in the team. Um, he also said there's a reason Manchester United feels like one of those high street legacy chain shops just before it collapses. Piles of Quality Street by the door, a rat in the lingerie department, destined to become a pop-up vape shop run by Albanian moneyaunderers. There's a reason it feels so badly run, and this is because it is. And I suppose that is the point that we've been making for a long time that you know you get rid of Carrick the problems remain. Um do you think Gmanson was lucky not to get sent off Dan? There were lots of there was lots of kicking and you know bad challenges at the weekend and I sort of feel the people that got red cards even if they were red cards were sort of slightly unluckier than the people that didn't get red cards. I don't know where Goodmanson fits in all of this for you. >> Yeah, there were some strange officiating this weekend. You're right. The ones that felt maybe marginally softer got punished this weekend, whereas the ones that you thought were were pretty bad didn't. I think if you look at the the scale of the weekend, he's probably just about okay. I think I think Leeds will be really really disappointed because that is a a disjointed messy Manchester United side. I got to be honest, I thought I thought Manchester United were were pathetic. I thought the way they set up as well. Meuire for this game is is okay because Leads will put lots of crosses into the box and they did and Meuire will repel that. But what I just couldn't understand and someone might be able to enlighten me is what benefit is there of keeping Yuro Yuro at right back and then bringing on a right back to play at center back. Like I get that maybe you don't want to move people around from your original plan, but I just couldn't see that there was any benefit for that when it already looked quite disjointed. Dalow is playing left back because of injuries. I just thought it was incredibly messy and less will look at that back four and think that was a real real missed opportunity to to get one over a really really poor version of Manchester United. >> No, I was thinking the same really because if you just saw the team sheet um for that sort of second half like naturally um to me it would look like um Dalow at right back, probably Mazoi at left back and Euro and Maguire at center back and three of them were playing in different positions to what they were probably most accustomed to. Um yeah, it was a it was a sort of disjointed um United performance or Manchester United performance, but I I sort of I can't get that worked up and angry about sort of Manchester United being like this anymore. sort of at some stage like if they just keep showing you who they are like time to believe them and so um it it was Euro played well actually in terms of the right back being a defensive right back but then you've got absolutely nothing um going forward down um that channel um whatsoever and like leads down their right hand side Bogle was good James Justin sort of joins in from right center back like you can if you're looking at both of those teams one of them has got a clear plan and identity in terms of how they want to play and one for them. They're struggling to to work it all out. Um I'd really like Calbertt Lewin. I think it's great to see him fit and sort of leading the line and scoring goals and um you know long may that continue for him really because like there aren't many sort of forwards are there for sort of England outside of Kane. So like Calvin Leuen becomes a maybe second choice at the moment. >> Just on kicking people, Apadu is pretty lucky I think to not get booked until the 92nd minute. He sort of could have got booked about five >> does the same. >> Yeah, >> he he does the same every week though. It's like it's just how he he seems to be one of them players a bit like Jonson that kind of just is able to just commit as many fouls as he wants really. >> Cloak of invisibility. Yeah. And obviously like if you get booked early, you don't go and do the same challenge again. Uh perhaps a bit lucky.