Manchester United’s interim manager Michael Carrick feels his players put in a great fight in a 2-0 win over Villarreal on Tuesday night.
In the aftermath of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s dismissal, United traveled to La Ceramica to face the Yellow Submarine in a high-stakes Champions League match. The Norwegian was stripped of his duties by the Old Trafford hierarchy on Sunday, less than 24 hours after the Red Devils’ humiliating 4-1 defeat at Watford.
Carrick was tasked with leading this soulless United team in one of the most important matches of the season under these difficult times for the three-time European winners.
Despite a performance that fell short of expectations once again, United scored the winning goal and advanced to the knockout stage. After the match, Carrick shared his thoughts on the game, praising his team’s spirit after a difficult few days.
As reported by SkySports, he said:
“The result obviously is a major plus from the run we’ve gone on – we can’t hide that. To get that feeling of winning a football match for the players is huge, and to keep a clean sheet, David [de Gea] was important again, so all round there’s a lot of positives to take.”
“The biggest [positive] I’ll take is how everyone adapted, the reaction and how they pulled together. In situations like this, there are mixed emotions. It’s a test of people and you find out who the real characters are, who’s there with you and who’s not. I thought everyone stuck together in terms of supporting me and my staff and we managed to get the win which is very pleasing. It was a big one.”
🔊 Post-match reaction from our caretaker boss 👇#MUFC | #UCL
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) November 23, 2021
On Matchday 5, the Premier League giants and Villarreal were tied for first place in Group F with seven points, two points ahead of third-placed Atalanta. As a result, United may have slipped to third place in the standings, putting their qualification chances in jeopardy.
Having Cristiano Ronaldo on your side, fortunately for Carrick and the Old Trafford fans, has its advantages. The all-time Champions League top scorer came to United’s rescue once more, smashing home a superb finish in the 78th minute to break the deadlock and put United ahead.
Another major signing for the summer Jadon Sancho scored with an unbelievable effort from inside the box. Sancho joined the party in stoppage time to finally get off the mark in the red shirt.
Even though it wasn’t United’s best performance, taking all three points at La Ceramica was crucial for Carrick’s team.
