Peter Schmeichel claims Michael Carrick is in no ‘immediate’ danger of losing his job as Manchester United’s hierarchy remain ‘confident’ he is the ‘future’.
Carrick picked up the pieces from Ruben Amorim’s tumultuous reign to steer United to a third-placed finish in the Premier League and Champions League qualification last season.
It saw Carrick handed the position on a full-time basis in the summer, with club bosses deciding to put their faith in a head coach whose only previous experience of top-level management was with Middlesbrough.
But that renewed sense of optimism amongst United’s fanbase ahead of the new campaign has quickly faded in what has proven a tricky opening two months for Carrick in the Old Trafford hot seat.
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To add to United’s troubles on the pitch, Lisandro Martinez’s explosive attack on the board following last week’s defeat at Atletico Madrid has done little to dampen feelings of an early-season crisis.
And while there were some positive signs of life in the Red Devils’ 1-1 draw with fierce rivals Leeds at the weekend, Carrick’s men now find themselves down in 13th place and without a win in six matches in all competitions.
However, according to United legend Schmeichel, Carrick should and likely will remain ‘patient’ for Carrick to turn the situation around at the Theatre of Dreams.
‘If you’re the manager of Manchester United, you’re always under pressure. Is he in immediate danger of being sacked? I don’t think so at all,’ he said on Viaplay following Sunday’s contest at Elland Road.
‘I think there is a lot of confidence in Michael Carrick at the leadership of the club, I think they’re very patient and they understand that it’s a rebuilding process that takes time.
‘Now, how they’ve gone about the rebuild, you can disagree or you can agree with that, but it’s going to take a long, long time to get Manchester United to where Manchester United wants to be.’
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The former United and Denmark goalkeeper believes Carrick deserves at least two more transfer windows before his job can be properly scrutinised.
‘They think he is the future, they will give him that time, they will give him those transfer windows and then we’ll see,’ Schmeichel – an integral member of Sir Alex Ferguson’s treble-winning side – added.
‘You go through maybe one or two more windows, then we can talk about him being under pressure other than the normal pressure there is on a manager at Manchester United.’
Freddie Ljungberg, Schmeichel’s colleague on Viaplay, echoed the Dane’s comments about Carrick and urged United to take note of how Mikel Arteta managed to turn the tide following a rocky start at Arsenal.
‘When I saw Manchester United last year, when Carrick came in, there seemed to be a lot of negativity from the fans, from the media. Everything was bad,’ the ex-Arsenal winger chimed in.
‘Whatever Ruben Amorim did, it was the wrong system, it was the wrong this, it was the wrong that.
‘I felt everything wasn’t fair, I didn’t think it was fair. I looked at the players and thought, “Oh, are they good enough for this?”, and Carrick comes in and he gets a positive spin on things.
‘People got in a good mood, the fans were in a good mood, the media starts to change because he’s been a legend at Manchester United.
‘So I think, for me, let’s say maybe at Arsenal when Mikel Arteta came in, there were a few times when people talked about Arteta getting sacked, they lose three games in a row, it’s bad, they’re bottom of the league.
‘But Arsenal stayed with him because the made the decision: he’s the future. And I think United should do the same. If they think Carrick is the future, stick with him.’
The Swede went on: ‘I understand that Manchester United is a massive club but I feel that’s the way forward.
‘Everybody is so quick and slaughtering. I get it, everybody is a fan, everybody wants the best.
‘But give him time, believe in him, then it will get some success.’
United will be desperate to bring their wretched winless streak to a halt when they return to Champions League action with a trip to Italy to face Cesc Fabregas’ Como on Wednesday evening.
The Red Devils switch their focus back to Premier League matters four days later at home to Bournemouth.
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