Michael Carrick revealed just how ready he thought his Manchester United players were for their clash with Arsenal in a candid conversation with former team-mate Wayne Rooney ahead of kick-off, the Red Devils legend has shared.
Man United’s interim manager boasts a perfect record since taking the reins from Ruben Amorim earlier this month, beating title chasers Manchester City and Arsenal.
Their smash-and-grab win at the Emirates lifted United to fourth in the Premier League table and sent a message regarding a new-found feeling of belief and fight within the dressing room to their top four rivals.
This, however, came as no surprise to Rooney, who revealed after the final whistle the conversation he had shared with Carrick in the build up to yesterday’s clash.
‘Michael told me how good the players were and he felt he had to stop the (training) session early because they were that good and he wanted to bottle it up,’ Rooney shared on The Wayne Rooney Show.
‘And that’s proven today. An absolutely incredible performance.’
Wayne Rooney has shared what his former team-mate Michael Carrick told him about Man United’s last training session before facing Arsenal
Man United have won both of their games – against Man City and Arsenal – since Carrick took charge
Rooney had spent Friday night with Carrick at Old Trafford too, with the Man United head coach taking in his second Under 18s match of the week.
While his predecessor Amorim failed to attend a youth game during his time at the club, Carrick has already demonstrated an interest in keeping a close eye on the academy ranks.
On Friday he watched Kai Rooney, one of Wayne’s four sons, earn his first minutes as a United player at Old Trafford.
Rooney, who took in his son’s performance alongside wife Coleen, underscored how the former Man United captain’s awareness of the club’s DNA would likely pay dividends as the team looks to move on from the chaos of the Amorim era.
‘There’s a calmness about the place,’ Rooney continued. ‘I was watching the Under 16s on Saturday morning and they were all there again. Michael Carrick was there, Steve Holland, Jason Wilcox, all the coaches were there and so on, which you’ve heard me talking about a lot, that connection with the academy.
‘What I saw, not just from Michael, but the other coaches, Jonny Evans as well, is a real calmness and a belief.
‘You’ve got all the coaching staff there watching the Under 18s play. And then again, on a Saturday morning, they’re all there watching the Under 16s play after the training session.
‘These are all things which used to happen in the past and it makes a big difference. In my eyes they have taken a step towards getting the club back a little bit closer to where they used to be when the club was successful.
‘I know how Michael works and I knew what he could do with this team. I am really pleased with the start he has made because he and his coaches have been criticised as well and have gone and competed with the best teams in the league.’
Carrick and Rooney (in the baseball cap) took in an Under 18s match together where the latter’s son Kai made his first minutes at Old Trafford
Carrick’s side’s performance in the capital on Sunday evening has even convinced some of his other former team-mates that he should remain in contention for the job on a permanent basis.
Rio Ferdinand claimed that it was ‘mad talk’ to say that six points against Man City and Arsenal did not burnish his credentials in any way. That came after Roy Keane labelled suggestions there weren’t ‘bigger and better names’ for Man United as ‘silly’.
‘Where the f-,’ Ferdinand said, before stopping himself. ‘Where do people get this?
‘The disrespect is unbelievable. For someone to say, “No matter what this person does, he doesn’t deserve to be given the keys to be given the keys to Man United”.
‘On what grounds are you saying that? That’s mad talk.’
Carrick will look to build on the team’s purple patch next week against Fulham, who have themselves risen to within four points of the top four after beating Brighton on Saturday.
