Your right about the lack of confidence to attempt any passes that can hurt the opposition. 99% of the time the ball goes sideways or backwards - thats not been very creative in my eyes.....

a lack of creativity and the old trademark long passes wouldn't be so bad if he didn't give the ball away so cheaply. a lot of the time it's as though he just passes the ball to the opposition, that's what i find worrying. you can be forgiven for trying a 40 yard pass upfield which is cut out by a defender, but i'm talking about short 5 yard passes that don't go anywhere near a united player.

I agree with putting Phil Jones on that position,the lad is aggressive and has the attacking prowess as we have seen,goals have been produced from his attacking runs,and he's also very good defensively.Carrick can win us back but should b given playing time only in lower calibre matches e.g the league cup and some FA cup matches

carick is neva man u player.....wit qualities bt u knw u can make use of anoda player.....i tink vidic would do beta than carrick in that role....

If Carrick was younger then the mistakes could be bearable but he is too old to be making elementary mistakes. He should play further up or he should be bench.

This article is full of shit n so r the people who r commenting with the exception of midwayj. Look at the stats carrick had more FORWARD PASSES in last seasons champions league ghan iniest. the sideways n backwards pass thing is a myth. also yeah he does make mistakes but they r highlighted more due to the area of the pitch he operates in. N y compare him to makelele completely different players claude was a destroyer a better comparision would be pirlo. If carrick played in spain or italy everyone would say hes class n composed

This article would have much more credibility if you offered up some basic statistics which back-up your argument.

The people who criticise Carrick are expecting something from him that he simply isn't in the team for, thus they don't understand his role.

If you DO understand his role but don't like it, fair enough, but there is only one person you should be blaming for him being there, and it isn't Carrick.

But one thing Carrick is most definitely not is a poor player. He is not shit. He is not a disgrace. He is not a pathetic.

Educate yourselves.

@BillMcNeal, I'd say that statistics aren't needed for a simple observation like this, but I do agree with your comment. As a general point, I'd say that with Fletch/Ando playing box to box, ideally you'd just want a ball playing midfielder next to them, which is what Carrick does. Normally, his first couple of games are a bit poor, but when he gets a run of games, he pings balls here, there and everywhere! However, because our defenders + ando love being on the ball, we have less of a need for a player like Carrick, but for a destroyer like de Jong, or an attack minded midfielder, like young Pogba. Carrick has done quite well till now, but he's slowly becoming less integral. His influence is diminishing.

Lastly, the article is spot on! Just disagree with the Arteta comment.

@JoeLash I was supposed to say John Obi Mikel.. But I got confused in my head with Mikel Arteta.

Sid - the article and the comments have said things like "has also seen him lose the ball too often in front of our defence thus meaning that we have conceded goals or have been pressurised because of it." and "99% of the time the ball goes sideways or backwards". Surely if this is the case, stats will easily back this up?

And then you quote this - ""carricks stats are better than iniesta"". It doesn't even mean anything. It's an empty statement.


I'll go against the grain here and ask people to debate these comments made in the article.

"During these days, his vision and passing was increased" - What does this mean? It's an empty statement without context.

"When he needed to be, he was a terrier and got the ball back aggressively." - What does this even mean? Why on earth does it matter how somebody wins the ball back?

"And because all of those players except for Rooney at the time didn’t have first team responsibilities" - Well this is clearly nonsense. 1 more start than Scholes, 3 more starts than Nani, 4 more starts than Berbatov. In the league, he made 2 more starts than Giggs. 1 more European start than Anderson. Rooney, Fletcher and Valencia all started more games.

"Unlike the first time, he crumbled under the pressure and his form dipped incredibly low. He lost all his confidence" - Or more likely his confidence was shattered after being pissed all over in Rome by possibly the greatest midfield of all time.

"I feel that he is the type of player we need but he is too much of a liability to use in that role" - How exactly is he a liability? No expansion on something that clearly should be.

Carrick is not that kind of player you can bet your last coin on. He is not just up to standard. All those who are defending him should reconsider their thoughts because Carrick is someone who can stab you at the back at any day. The guy is just not good for united. How can a midfielder who is tasked to spread passes to the attackers intends backspasses the ball to the defenders frequently. He is also known for his slow nature in releasing the ball. I think those who are defending him are not championing the course of united. Hey! Hey! Hey!!! Man u fans listen ooo. That is why we will continue to be walloped by barca with Carrick bossing the midfield.

Well guys, stop arguing. Its simple, just ask yourself this Question....

Imagine its the those days with Scholes and Keane bossing the Midfield, will you swap them for Micheal Carrick??

Now, with Micheal Carrick and Darren Fletcher, will you swap them for a Nasri, or Modric or Sneijder, or even a Young and Untested ... Tom Cleverley?

Well, answer is clear isn't it?

=D

If Micheal Carrick is that good, he would have easily commanded a place in the England squad.. but He's not even in the reserve of England, that speaks how good he is. How can united ha

Not on any planet is his stats better than the barca mid field there pass rate is 97% ! carrick is afraid to hit a forward pass so he gets caught in 2 minds and makes a poor pass an if Evans is behind we will lose a goal. Them 2 just don't seem good enough for united, there's no room for improvement and should be shipped out along with berb as he is not an impact player and he's only gonna be sat on the bench and he's to good to be sat around , he won't get a good run in the team due to the fact we have gone back to attacking at speed at last. Missed it since Ronaldo an tevez left.

Hope Owen gets a start on sat with Rooney, will all the chances we are making he will score loads and then get him in the England set up with the other united lads cos England needs to be built around our united players so we might play like a team.

Carrick never has and never will be world class nor is Darren Fletcher but what they are is a squad player who can do a job when needed should we sell Carrick no should he play in the big games no!! I really do think the future of our midfield is Cleverly and Anderson but having Carrick and Fletcher as back up is not half bad!!!

I anit got him in my dream team! Enough said!

Marc

"Imagine its the those days with Scholes and Keane bossing the Midfield, will you swap them for Micheal Carrick??"

Imagine it's the days of Scholes and Keane bossing the midfield, would you swap them for Xaviesta?


"Now, with Micheal Carrick and Darren Fletcher, will you swap them for a Nasri, or Modric or Sneijder, or even a Young and Untested ... Tom Cleverley?"

Why would we swap a player happy to sit on the bench and who loves the club, for a prima-donna on £100k+ more a week and who doesn't even play the same role? Let's not... Samir Nasri? Fuck off. Only Modric of them 3.


"If Micheal Carrick is that good, he would have easily commanded a place in the England squad.. but He's not even in the reserve of England, that speaks how good he is."

Scholes was shafted to left-wing to allow Gerrard and Lampard in.

Andy Cole could never get in the England squad.





Idiot Craptree

"Who are you to compare Carrick to Cleverly"

Somebody who is being told that a team with Cleverley is making more chances than that with Carrick in.


"Carrick for all those years he has been at united how many hearts has he won?"

More importantly, how many trophies has he won.


"You talk as if you as if you know football but to me you are just not up to scratch."

Coming from somebody who doesn't understand how Michael Carrick even plays? How droll.





John Mac

"Not on any planet is his stats better than the barca mid field there pass rate is 97%"

That's funny, not one Barcelona player has a passing stat of that this season...





Hambergerop

"How well the carrick and cleverly play should not be based on those stats bill."

I never said it did. All I did was point out somebody's erroneous comment.


"And btw, cleverly scored 3 goals and made 2 assists last season at Wigan in 19 games compared to carrick who scored 0 goal and made 0 assists at Utd in 32 league games."

And btw, playing for Wigan Athletic is a completely different prospect to playing for Manchester United.

And btw, Michael Carrick is a deep-lying playmaker, it isn't his job to score and assist.





Richard Huckvale

You're words will go straight over their heads. What with it making sense.





Red Jedi

I don't have Sergio Busquets or Xabi Alonso in my Champions League fantasy team. Because he doesn't get points. Because it isn't his job to get points. Because it isn't his job to score of get assists.

Sensing a pattern emerging here...?

Fuck you asshole elejeo

@Bill the moron McNEAL. Why do you like exposing your ignorance concerning Carrick. Are you telling us that it was only Carrick who masterminded us to achieving this successes. Any player other than Carrick like Gibson could have played the same role as Carrick did. What we are saying is that we need a midfielder of quality and that midfielder is Cleverly. Case close.

Idiot Craptree: "Are you telling us that it was only Carrick who masterminded us to achieving this successes."

If I had wanted to say that, I would have said that. I never said that. Clearly.

What I am saying, which anybody who could use their brain would understand quite easily, is that you don't have that record at Manchester United by being an average player. There are only a few first-team ever-presents in the successes since 2006/07 - Edwin van der Sar, Patrice Evra, Nemanja Vidic, Rio Ferdinand, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, Michael Carrick, Wayne Rooney. It isn't luck on Carrick's behalf that he is in that illustrious list.


"Any player other than Carrick like Gibson could have played the same role as Carrick did."

So why did a man who had, up to that point won 8 Premiership titles, decide to spend £16m on him? Why didn't this man just use David Jones? Why wasn't Alan Smith particularly successful in the midfield? Why wasn't Darren Fletcher used at that point? Oh.


"What we are saying is that we need a midfielder of quality and that midfielder is Cleverly."

Cleverley has only been a success for us so far due to a change of style of play, a change of system, a change evident to everybody. It's likely he would have bombed as a deep-lying playmaker because it isn't his game. Just like Darren Fletcher would bomb as a trequartista, and Javeir Hernandez would bomb as a winger.

I just don't understand the distinct lack of appreciation given to Michael Carrick, it crosses over from criticism to contempt, it's very sad.

"Carrick was never bought for the position he now operates in."

So you're saying the manager and his scouts didn't do their job properly, or are you blaming the player? Apparently the latter judging from the diatribe that followed.



"yet still gets caught in possession far too readily with disastrous consequences"

2009/10 - Carrick was caught in possession 0.7 times per game. 12th worst in the squad, with Rooney, Giggs, Nani, Berbatov, Fletcher and Scholes losing it more often.

Passing success of 85%, 3rd best in the squad behind serial-substitute Michael Owen, and Paul Scholes.


2010/11 - Carrick was caught in posession 0.6 times per game. 10th worst in the squad, with Nani, Park, Rooney, Valencia, Berbatov, Giggs, Anderson, Fletcher and Chicharito losing it more often.

Passing success of 90%, 2nd best in the squad behind... Paul Scholes.

The statistics indicate he loses the ball less than anybody except the recently retired Paul Scholes.



"To perform well in the defensive midfield role"

Shame for your rant that he isn't a defensive midfielder then.



"something Keane was close to"

Can you actually back this up or are you just trying to undermine Michael Carrick? I'll hazard a guess at the latter...



"an ability to drive the team forward/leadership."

Doesn't have leadership?! Tell that to Zeki!

Okay. Points taken. But that's like saying that if a midfielder doesn't do the job of midfielders before then we shouldn't expect more from him... If a player just passes the ball simple but has the ability to do more then we shouldn't expect more of him? I am not arguing. I am just stating a point so please do not come back with a retort. Thanks.

@Dazzers

Carrick world class? Come on, he's a decent player for sure but world class? Not even close.

A world class midfielder would be dominating far more games than Carrick ever has (two to my memory - Roma at home and Newcastle away about four years ago), he would be creating chances and influencing play no matter where he is on the pitch (you can count his goals and assists on one hand for all the time he has been with United).

A world class midfielder makes time and space for himself, again something that Carrick regularly fails to do because his first touch is always to control the ball thus losing time and space. For all his fabled vision Carrick takes the easy option far too readily and seems to bottle it if a pass goes astray, we saw that recently when he tried one hollywood ball that was cut out and he retreated into his shell.

I don't meant to assassinate Carrick but to say that he is world class is an insult to the truly world class players out there, its a description that is far too over used in my opinion and should be applied only to the likes of Messi, Ronaldo, Iniesta etc, truly world class players.