Man Utd: Neville sends sack warning to Carrick as another pundit claims he will be axed ‘by January’
Gary Neville has warned Michael Carrick that he could soon find himself in “a lot of trouble” at Manchester United after the draw against Fulham.
Carrick was named Man Utd permanent manager towards the end of last season, having earned the job by getting the Premier League giants to qualify for the Champions League by finishing third.
Appointing Carrick was a simple decision after he built momentum last season and because there were few quality alternatives to choose from.
But Man Utd’s performances under Carrick have already declined, with the Red Devils only taking five points from their opening five Premier League games this season.
The presusre is already mounting on Carrick and former Arsenal player Perry Groves believes he will be ‘sacked by January’.
“I’m looking at this and I said Man United are a half-and-half team,” Groves said on talkSPORT.
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“When they close down, they do it half-heartedly. When they drop deep, they don’t close the ball down when it’s in their own final third.
“I can’t see Michael Carrick lasting half the season.”
Groves has also argued that the draw “papered over the cracks” at Man Utd, who “got away with it”.
Groves added: “They had a bit of urgency when they were 1-0 down, but it’s a different scenario,” Groves added.
“When you’re one or 2-0 down, it’s easier because the opposition sits deeper, so you then think you’ll take chances.
“They should be doing that before they go 1-0 down in the 63rd minute.”
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Groves continued: “From a player’s point of view, I think they’re nice to play against,” Groves said.
“I don’t think they really test you. We’ve seen it in the first half where Fulham played through them fairly easily. There was a period of 20 minutes in that first half where every time Fulham went forward, they looked like they were going to score.
“If Gonzalo Garcia had his boots on the right feet in the first half, this could have been a lot worse.
“I just think Manchester United have got away with it.”
“He will find himself in a lot of trouble…”
Neville also fears for Carrick, who will be in “a lot of trouble” if these “types of performances continue”.
“What I’m saying is, though, if those types of performances continue, he will find himself in a lot of trouble. They’ve got to work harder than that for him. I’m absolutely not changing my mind on that,” Neville said.
“Those players have got to work harder for Michael Carrick, or it will cause him a massive issue, because they didn’t work hard enough today. And that’s the biggest criticism I can give you.
“I think all of those players, and I’ve said I’ve liked them for six months of last season under Michael Carrick, they can all work a lot harder than that…”
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