Neville insists one Man Utd star ‘absolutely critical’ for ‘par’ Premier League finish
Gary Neville has revealed what he believes would be a “par” Premier League finish for Manchester United under Michael Carrick this season and insists one player will be “absolutely critical” for them to achieve that goal.
The Red Devils drew 1-1 with Leeds at Elland Road on Sunday as Bryan Mbeumo’s first-half opener was cancelled out by Dominic Calvert-Lewin after the break.
It was a solid display in a game many expected Man Utd to lose and Neville believes it could be a “stepping stone” for Carrick.
Speaking on the Gary Neville podcast, the Sky Sports pundit said: “[There’s] a depressed standard and a low expectation right now.
“But it’ll feel like a stepping stone for Michael Carrick, and it’ll feel like the first step on the ladder in the Premier League.
“They may take some confidence from that, and there might be a blueprint there. Maybe we have to bring Matheus Cunha, Marcus Rashford and others off the bench, and we might just have to have a go at being more solid.”
The result leaves Man Utd in 13th place after just one win from their opening seven games and Neville has revealed what he believes would be a “par” Premier League finish for his former side.
“I would say fourth would be a birdie, fifth would be par, and sixth would be a bogey,” said Neville of his former club’s targets for the season. “But they can’t finish outside the top five, because then you’re missing out on Champions League and it becomes a vicious circle.
“Then you can’t get those players because they want to play in the Champions League and you can’t get the money from it and you’ve lost the £60m-£70m and you’re in the Europa League on Thursday nights.
“Fifth is a must for Michael Carrick to continue to grow and Manchester United continue to grow with investment.
“If they’re 13th in January, he’s got a problem because then you are what you are. Whereas I think it’s still early enough, seven points from seven games, to say, ‘okay, still early in the season’. You can’t say that after 15 games.
“It has to change in the next few weeks: Bournemouth is really important and Chelsea away. And how he manages the games in between that.
“You’ve got to say fifth. You know that anything less than fifth is going to be a disappointment and a dropping standard from the start of the season where everybody expected them to finish.
“And at the moment, they’re well short of that because you look at Brighton, Liverpool, Aston Villa – they look like they’re picking up a little bit. It’s difficult.”
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Baleba the ‘absolutely critical’ cog
Neville also reserved praise for £7om Carlos Baleba, who he believes will prove to be “absolutely critical” for Man Utd and Carrick this season after he once again impressed alongside fellow summer signing Andrey Santos.
“I know he had a difficult season last year at Brighton, but you watch him in his first couple of games or so for United, and he’s got something,” said Neville. “He’s got a bit of strength about him, he’s got a presence.
“Him staying fit is gonna be absolutely critical, I can understand why Michael Carrick took him off with 20 minutes to go [at Leeds], because he’s played [nearly] three games in a week.
“Maybe he doesn’t play him against Como on Wednesday. We’re not throwing the Champions League away, but Manchester United have to beat Bournemouth next weekend.
“I just wonder whether that Santos-Baleba partnership is going to stay there for a bit, and let a couple of [the attacking players] float around in front, and be a lot more solid, make sure we’re not giving as much space away.
“I’m sick of Manchester United’s team being easy to play against, and Michael Carrick will be sick of it.”
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