Carrick’s future as Manchester United manager is in serious doubt after a 2-0 Premier League defeat at Chelsea on Saturday, reports AFP.
Morgan Rogers opened the scoring early in the second half, and Cole Palmer added a penalty after Lisandro Martínez was sent off. United have now gone nine games without a win in all competitions.
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The 20-time English champions are still one point above the relegation zone, and could be in the bottom three by the end of the weekend.
Carrick kept his job after last weekend’s 3-0 home defeat to Bournemouth, but his side were again let down by their finishing in the first half.
Bruno Fernandes was back in the starting line-up after being dropped for criticising Carrick’s tactics following the 4-1 Champions League defeat at Como. The captain should have scored when he blazed over from Bryan Mbeumo’s cross, and Chelsea’s stand-in goalkeeper Mike Penders twice denied Amad Diallo.
Matheus Cunha did turn in Harry Maguire’s header from a corner, but he was offside.
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United fell apart after the break. Rogers has credited Carrick with reviving his career when they worked together at Middlesbrough. On 50 minutes he picked up the ball in the centre circle, ran straight through the United defence and chipped Senne Lammens.
Martínez, who has publicly criticised the club’s lack of spending in the transfer market, was booked moments later for pulling back Rogers. From the free-kick, he caught Wesley Fofana with a raised forearm.
After a VAR review, referee Peter Banks awarded a penalty and showed Martínez a second yellow card. Lammens got a hand to Palmer’s spot-kick, but the ball still crept into the bottom corner.
Estêvão, making a rare start under Xabi Alonso, had a third goal ruled out for offside. Chelsea fans taunted Carrick with chants of “sacked in the morning” as their side played out the final quarter.
United host Roma in the Champions League on Tuesday. They have lost two of their three games in the league phase, and another defeat at Old Trafford would leave them facing an early exit.
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– AFP
Photo: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
