Michael Carrick can seemingly do no wrong.
His MUFC side finally managed to beat Palace at home after a somewhat fortuitous 2-1 victory ending the Eagles’ unbeaten run at Old Trafford.
I’m gonna be honest here, these type of wins confuse me.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m elated with the 3 points as that was the most important. But how we got is the thing that makes me feel somewhat flat.
Which is ironically how United played for a large portion of that game, particularly in the first half.
An early corner from Palace saw them score a pretty easy header. Poor marking from Yoro allowed Palace’s main man Maxence Lacroix to score a simple header into the far post. Lammens had no chance.
This was just 4 minutes into the game yet even at such an early stage, you could see that we just weren’t at the races. It looked like we were the team that played on Thursday night 👀.
Many would think that while it wasn’t an ideal start, it could perhaps be an early kick up the arse that we needed.
However, as the half went on, United were nowhere in the game despite Palace not really troubling Lammens.
20 minutes in and Carrick’s men did nothing. Even with his first start in a while, United didn’t really make the most of having a striker in form at the head of the helm. The first cross came in on the 37th minute.
It was only towards the end of the half that we started to show any urgency.
A very lethargic opening 45 culminated in United’s manager and players running off the pitch. Perhaps the quickest and most energetic the XI looked all day!
The start of the second half didn’t display a side with much more intent than the first as United once again, appeared very lackluster.
And then, the moment that changed everything.
Just before the hour mark, a brilliant through ball by Bruno to Cunha caught goal scorer Lacroix out.
The Brazilian was in on goal but a slight pull back saw Cunha go to the ground.
Penalty.
However, a lengthy VAR check followed by a review by the referee to check whether it was a penalty or not.
That decision stood but more than that, as Lacroix was the last man, the defender was shown a red.
The skipper then stepped up and did what he does from the spot kick.
Scoring that penalty when he did was crucial because of how the game was going. United needed something to get back in the match and that’s exactly what they got.
With the momentum firmly with the home team, United’s in form man Sesko put the side ahead.
Another wonderful ball by Bruno was perfect for the big striker to get his head on it. The header was hit with such power it was past Dean Henderson before he dived!
That goal was vital because it was so quick after the equalizer. It gave no hope to Palace that they could stay in the match.
This is where things needed to change.
With ten men in the opposition and 30 minutes to go, this was a chance to really hammer Palace and score a couple more goals.
Carrick had other ideas though.
He did bring on Amad but for Sesko, who appeared a little upset with being substituted. Who wouldn’t?
This was a chance for us to see whether Carrick is the type to go for the throat.
He didn’t. And while Palace didn’t really take advantage of a United side who did let off a little, it was an unnecessary risk to let the game stay as tight as that.
But in the end, winning was all that mattered.
The table looks a bit unreal given the fact that we are now 3rd! We managed to take advantage of Villa losing and taking their place.
With UCL football being the ultimate goal, getting as many points as we can is more important than the how, which is kinda contradictory given what I said earlier, but for the main goal, 3 points, 3 points, 3 points.
Ratings
Lammens - 6
Dalot - 4.5
Yoro - 5
Maguire - 6
Shaw - 5
Mainoo - 5
Casemiro - 5.5
Mbeumo - 5.5
Bruno - 8 MOTM
Cunha - 6
Sesko - 7
Mazraoui - 6
Amad - 6
Zirkzee - 6
Heaven - 6
Carrick - 5
Final Thoughts
Brutal honesty time.
I know people are gonna say I’m being negative, not a real fan, stop ungrateful. I get it. We won and to then sound negative isn’t part of the narrative.
Why it will sound negative is because the reality of the situation is.
United weren’t good today. We weren’t good in the last few games. We were lethargic, flat, had no urgency, the amount of sloppy passes we played was ridiculous, and to allow Palace to remain in the game until the end despite being ten men for half an hour is unacceptable.
I think Carrick got lucky.
That wasn’t a penalty for me. I don’t even think it was a foul. I don’t know what the rules are on fouls whether it’s given because of first contact or when the player goes down, but I do believe Cunha made the most of it.
And because of that moment, we won the game.
I think the quality of our players got us through just like it did at Everton and West Ham. The football has been pretty mediocre and boring and to have to rely on individual brilliance, moments, or red cards, is not going to strengthen your case in trying to be the permanent manager.
I was confused with the subs considering we had the man advantage for a while. I’m not sure why Carrick took Sesko off. With his form, the momentum with us and Palace a man down, why not take off a defensive player for an attacker?
Palace weren’t doing anything and there was a chance to score more goals and win this game more comfortably than we did.
I understand that this is nitpicking. I understand that people are satisfied with just winning which is something that I’ve stated as being the most important thing at the moment.
But surely we can expect more? Surely especially for those who would like Carrick to get the permanent job, you want to see more from him?
I’ve not really been impressed with what I’ve seen. It’s actually something we’ve seen before with Carrick and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer: counter attacking, moments, individual brilliance, good vibes.
As we’ve seen though, this isn’t sustainable.
Luck will run out.
Hopefully that occurs after we’ve already qualified for the Champions League.
Bruno Fernandes inspires Man Utd to 2-1 win over Crustal Palace with 7th goal and 13th assist of the season | Image via Manchester United official X (@ManUtd)