Michael Carrick has won five of his first six games since returning to Manchester United – a complete contrast to the Reds’ form before manager Ruben Amorim was sacked.
Michael Carrick leads Manchester United to a top-four finish (Image: Getty Images)
Gary Neville believes Manchester United’s resurgence under Michael Carrick will force “changes” when Ruben Amorim returns as manager. United’s caretaker manager secured another win when the Red Devils beat Everton on Monday night, increasing the club’s chances of finishing in the top four.
Amorim, 41, was sacked by United last month after a 1-1 draw with Leeds United, with just one win in five games. Carrick was replaced by Darren Fletcher in the Premier League match against Burnley and at home against Brighton in the FA Cup, before Carrick became the club’s head coach until the end of the season.
And Carrick’s impact since returning to Old Trafford has been impressive, with the 44-year-old leading United to five wins and one draw in their first six games. United had won four straight against Manchester City, Arsenal, Fulham and Tottenham, but that streak ended with a 1-1 draw with West Ham earlier this month.
Follow Man United’s FB page! Keep up with the latest United news and more on our dedicated Facebook page
read more: Super-sub Benjamin Sesco beats Everton to propel Manchester United into the top four – 5 talking pointsread more: Manchester United star’s ‘hostile’ celebration goes unpunished, Michael Carrick’s reaction
But United bounced back and recorded another win, beating Everton 1-0 at the Hill Dickinson Stadium on Monday night. With this result, they have moved up to 4th place, 3 points behind 3rd place Aston Villa, and are in a good position to qualify for the Champions League.
After taking over, Carrick ditched Amorim’s 3-4-2-1 formation in favor of a simpler 4-2-3-1, and also brought back Koby Mainu, who had defected under the previous head coach.
Carrick has also made a number of other changes, including shortening training sessions to make them more intense and delaying arrival times for home and away matches by 15 minutes.
Make mirrors your first choice. Click here to enable or add us as a preferred source in your Google search settings
Benjamin Sesco’s strong finish gave United another big win (Image: 2026 Chris Brunskill/Fantasista)
It’s a formula that has worked so far, and former United defender Neville believes Carrick’s influence will cause Amorim to change his ways for his next managerial job. “If you look at what’s going on now, obviously he (Amorim) did a lot of things wrong,” Neville told Sky Sports after the Everton match.
“He changed his system a little bit in a few games and it looked like it could be a step forward. But against Wolves he went backwards and that felt like a killer for Ruben Amorim to me.”
“Then you look at what happened with Koby Mainu, and you see him playing there with Casemiro, they look like a very capable pair. Koby Mainu looks like a football player. He looks like he can play the position well, he looks like he can handle the ball, he looks like he can do it, he looks like he’s back to his best, and that’s what stands out.”
Gary Neville believes Ruben Amorim may be forced to change for his next job (Image: Getty Images)
“There are a lot of things: the playing system, injuries, AFCON, Harry Maguire’s return, Michael’s atmosphere, Michael’s composure, maybe he likes what he sees on the pitch. But I’m sure Ruben Amorim is watching Manchester United at home. I don’t think he’s a guy who sits there and thinks, ‘I can’t believe this is happening’. He’s worked with a lot of players and staff.”
“But he might be sitting there thinking, ‘How would I be different in the future if I were to play the same position again and get a different job? Maybe I’m being a little too stubborn and not fully implementing the changes that the players want.’
During his 14 months in charge of United, Amorim won just 24 of 63 games in all competitions. However, while the Portuguese has put the Reds in a position to challenge for Champions League qualification, there is a good chance that Carrick will then push the Reds into the top four and keep them there for the rest of the season.
United’s next game is on Sunday when they host Crystal Palace at Old Trafford. He then heads to Newcastle United to face Aston Villa in mid-March.
Join our new MAN UTD WhatsApp community and receive your daily Manchester United content from Mirror Football. Community members also receive special offers, promotions, and advertisements from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check it out whenever you like. If you are interested, please read our privacy notice.
Sky Sports Premier League and EFL package discounts
£49
£35
sky
Get the deal here
Sky has reduced the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £336 on their bill and offering more than 1,400 live matches from Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will broadcast at least 215 live Premier League games this season, with an increase of up to 100 more.
