Carrick Acknowledges Manchester United's Clean-Sheet Problem Ahead of Como Trip
Michael Carrick admits United must tighten up defensively as they face Como in the Champions League, with injuries and a revolving back line complicating the search for stability.
Manchester United manager Michael Carrick has acknowledged his side's difficulties in keeping clean sheets, conceding the point bluntly when asked at his pre-match news conference ahead of Wednesday's Champions League meeting with Como. United have shut out opponents just once in 10 games this season, against Azerbaijan champions Sabah FK last month, and Carrick said there are parts of his team's game that must improve to make results easier.
The problem extends beyond this campaign. United registered six clean sheets in Carrick's 17 matches in charge last term, and their defensive record contrasts sharply with Arsenal's seven shutouts in 11 games this season, a comparison drawn in the article. Carrick's cause has not been helped by a lack of continuity: only once has he named the same back four, when Diogo Dalot, Harry Maguire, Lisandro Martinez and Luke Shaw started against Ipswich on 30 August and retained their places at Everton the following week.
Carrick described his fitness update before the Como match as a mixed bag. Matthijs de Ligt is fit and ready after 11 months out following back surgery in May, but Martinez has a thigh injury and did not travel to Italy, Leny Yoro is suspended, and Shaw remains unavailable and is expected to be out longer than Kobbie Mainoo's 10-day absence. At Leeds, Carrick used Noussair Mazraoui, usually a full-back, in central defence.
The left-back position has drawn particular scrutiny. Dalot became the fifth different player to start there in six games when he filled in against Leeds, and none of the quintet aside from Shaw is regarded as a natural left-back. The article notes that United spoke to Manchester City about Rayan Ait-Nouri on deadline day, suggesting the club saw it as a potential issue, while Carrick said 19-year-old Harry Amass is right in contention and that young players eventually need an opportunity.
Carrick also defended the club's summer transfer work when asked whether the money spent on Andrey Santos could have gone elsewhere, saying decisions had to be made in the circumstances and that United made the best of the window. The article notes that some in the agent community feel sporting director Jason Wilcox was working with a budget many considered inadequate, and that observers believe the left-back situation could have been anticipated in the summer. Supporters' views are not quoted in the source.
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