Just because one says a manager deserves time doesn't mean that they deserve forever. I said that Arne Slot deserved time, but after some time passed I reached the conclusion that he should be sacked, and he was. I am the same with Michael Carrick right now. He deserves more time based on what he showed last season, but patience is wearing thin. The start to this season has been completely unacceptable, and the ball drops with him because the squad is nowhere near as bad as people make it out to be. And, on a separate but related point, I always said that both of these managers were sub-elite tactically, and it led people to criticise me when they had success (when Liverpool won the league and when United got into the Champions League). Yet, when I say that they deserve time to rediscover what gave them success, apparently I became an apologist for them? Please. Do better at assessing nuance.

💣💥 Lisandro Martinez, his teammates, and Michael Carrick should look in the mirror. The club may not have had the most incredible summer window (partly down to the fact that they didn't replace a player like Martinez in the XI due to the shortage of world class centre backs available), but there is a LOT that the coaching staff and players can control, yet none of them are succeeding in this regard. Manchester United fans said they would be happy would their summer window if they signed Lewis Hall on top of what they already signed. Do you really think that Lewis Hall would solve all of United's problems? Get a grip. And this idea that United's squad is small is just not true. They have two players for every single position. No matter what way you spin it, that is the reality. How many teams in world football can say that about their squad? Also, sometimes the market is not in a position where it makes sense to spend a LOT of money because of the player pool available (look at Arsenal and Liverpool over the years). Besides, United have certain financial restrictions as a consequence of the mistakes of yesteryear, and are we really going to act like last summer was a bad window with Mbeumo, Cunha, Sesko, and Lammens signed with countless players on big wages who were not good enough shipped out? That same summer window is the main reason United finished 3rd last season when they finished 15th under Ruben Amorim the season prior to that (who seem insane fans think the club should have kept). United's attackers, on top of Bruno Fernandes, are their best asset by a mile. In the summer just gone, they rebuilt the midfield, and although it may not be flawless, I'd argue that if they signed Elliott Anderson and played him alongside an incredible talent like Kobbie Mainoo that Manchester United would STILL have major problems. Partly because of personnel (like the outdated Lisandro Martinez and Harry Maguire partnership), but also largely because of tactics and imbalance. Are we really going to argue that this squad of players it totally incompetent? Even though Michael Carrick already showed that he can accumulate a title-challenging points tally over the course of half a season (albeit without European football to contend with)? Let's be serious here. Was the summer window perfect? No. But Lisandro Martinez coming out and blaming the sporting director and the board is pathetic. He has been atrocious this season. But, not only that, you can't always have everything in the market. This isn't a video game. And Manchester United are not a club who breaks rules to sign whoever they want whenever they want like their despicable neighbours. What Michael Carrick and the players can control is what I'm interested in. Lisandro Martinez can control not giving the ball away at home to Ipswich. He can also control not being bullied by Solanke which cost United 2 points at home to Spurs. But Carrick is the main culprit, here. He has had a shocking season so far. Last season, Carrick gave United balance by playing basic football. They pressed in a diamond shape from opposition goal kicks but when they lacked pressure on the ball they were content to sit back and protect their box. With the ball, they were well-coached in the 4-2-4 build-up and had a nice blend of freedom + positional play in their 3-1-3-3 / 3-1-6 attack. This season, that balance has been lost MASSIVELY. Rashford coming back and playing alongside Cunha to start the season made the team too fluid positionally in attack with not enough positional rigidity combined with too many half-assed defensive players at the top end of the pitch. Combine that with a midfield two of Mainoo + Tielemans and a centre back partnership of Martinez + Maguire and every single area in the team lacks athleticism. That's a selection issue. There is nothing stopping Carrick from picking more athletic profiles or balanced teams. I have always said that Carrick is similar to Arne Slot as a coach (albeit not as good) because his teams have some decent details with the ball but are below average in the press and cautious defensively which means that they can A) be played through at times and B) be pinned back onto the edge of their own box. But the problem with Carrick this season is that the balance in possession is not as good as what it once was and he has tried to implement a more aggressive pressing model which is not well coached AND the team lack athleticism + intensity to play that way, thus resulting in some PATHETIC performances. Let me give you on example by looking at the 2nd to 4th images below. Rashford jumps to Llorente but is miles too late. Llorente has about 5 yards of separation as he's playing the pass forwards. Heaven and Baleba press the same man, Atleti's #6 runs off the back of Tielemans + Mbeumo, and now United are defending with a 5v3 underload in their own defensive line on the edge of their own box. AND THIS HAPPENED 10x IN THE FIRST HALF ALONE. Bruno played on the right wing and sometimes he was randomly pressing Romero at right centre half? His role was to invert to press the left centre back with Dalot backing up the press behind him and Yoro shifting across but the amount of times he jumped too early was insane. Where is the clarity tactically? Baleba was als often on the right side of the pitch coming all the way across from the left? Why? He's trying, and I respect that, but there is not enough clarity for him to work with from the coaching staff. And, the amount of times players had their hands in the air demonstrating with each other because there was defensive confusion was INCREDIBLE. I could give you countless examples of these types of issues from the Fulham and Spurs game as well, all of which stem from a lack of tactical clarity and team-selection issues. What made United good last season was their individual quality. Not their tactics. Michael Carrick has always been really basic. I got a lot of heat for saying that last season. But what I also said is that although he is basic, United can still do really well under him, but that was under the assumption that he would continue with last season's game-model. The game-model and style of play that was basic, sure, but it at least gave United constant balance with the ball and clarity defensively. That clarity defensively is the biggest problem this season. United will never be the most athletically dominant group of players with the squad profile that they have, but last season when they didn't have possession they were happy to defend low and counter-attack. Now they are trying to get more pressure on the ball high and in the mid-block through man-to-man pressure or zonal turned man-to-man pressure but the coaching combined with the team selections and subsequent lack of athleticism is MILES OFF OF IT. These are ALL controllable factors. Lisandro Martinez has been shocking this season, but so has Michael Carrick tactically. Is that the sporting director's fault? No, it's not, obviously. Martinez' attitude is defeatist and extremely negative. For a player in the leadership group to come out and say that is a disgrace because it highlights the pessimistic attitude in the group. Now I will have even less excuses for this team - for the likes of Bruno, Cunha, and whoever the hell else who throw their arms up in the air over some petulant situation. I said Michael Carrick should be given time based on what he showed last season, but after the Fulham, Spurs, and Atleti games that patience is wearing thin. If you give this United team basic balance with and without the ball then the quality is so incredible in attack alone that there is no doubt that this team will finish in the Champions League spaces domestically. Carrick gave the team balance most weeks last season and we saw that reality play out. This season? The balance hasn't reliably been there with or without the ball (especially defensively). He has to improve, and so do the individuals on the pitch because even the good iteration of Carrick's basic game-model is reliant on individuals over-performing relative to the norm, but that happened last season (Bruno Fernandes). This season, Bruno's output has fallen off of a cliff, guys like Mbeumo have missed key chances at key times (City, Atleti), Cunha has flattered to deceive, Rashford hasn't even scored a goal yet, and Sesko has proven to be unreliable because he can't stay fit 😤 My eyes are on Michael Carrick, mainly. Give the team balance and United will be better immediately. Basic, but better. The faults lie with him more than anybody else. Some passion would also be appreciated to get the fans and players on side, too… But save me the pitiful excuses. I've no time for them. There is more than enough at Michael Carrick's disposal to make this team play far better than they are. And, as much as the structure doesn't help him, Lisandro Martinez must take responsibility for his own shocking performances to start the season and lead by example on the pitch, not with petulant and defeatist comments off the pitch. 😡 I rest my case 🛑