Bryan Mbeumo has spent this season handing Michael Carrick leads. He has yet to work out how to make them stick. The Cameroon forward diverted Youri Tielemans’ cross past Leeds goalkeeper Trafford in the 35th minute at Elland Road on Sunday, his fourth Premier League goal of the campaign and the third that has put Manchester United 1-0 up. Sixteen minutes after the restart, Dominic Calvert-Lewin turned in a loose ball from a corner, and United’s winless run stretched to six games in all competitions.
Carrick said he had spent the week with his headphones on and therefore had not heard the noise around his club — a week that took in a 2-0 Champions League defeat at Atletico Madrid and a fine for Lisandro Martinez after the defender publicly criticised the hierarchy over summer transfers. The 1-1 draw was United’s third consecutive 1-1 result in the league. They are 13th, with six points from seven matches: their worst start to a season since 1986-87.
A point, and little else, for Carrick
“A point is a point. It is a step forward for us,” Carrick said. “I was proud of the boys for the way they went about it in difficult circumstances.” He was more candid about the standard of the performance: “Maybe if you talk about top quality, maybe it wasn’t the top, top quality.”
The numbers back him up. United had 13 shots to Leeds’ 12 but only three on target against five, and recorded 12 touches in the opposition box to Leeds’ 21. Expected goals finished 1.44 to 0.91 in Leeds’ favour, with 1.19 of the home side’s total generated after the interval. Anton Stach had the clearest opening of the second half and could not take it. Daniel Farke’s verdict — “we are slightly disappointed it is just a point” — was the more defensible reading of the 90 minutes.
Carrick lost Martinez at half-time, the Argentine having appeared to be carrying an injury, and the equaliser came from a soft corner conceded by substitute Noussair Mazraoui. Bruno Fernandes, booked in the first half for a challenge on Muharemovic, cut a frustrated figure throughout and was United’s lowest-rated outfield starter across most ratings panels. Diogo Dalot, an attacking right-back deployed on the left, was the pick of the visitors.
The lead United cannot hold
The pattern is the problem. Mbeumo has scored to put United ahead against Everton, Tottenham and now Leeds. All three finished 1-1. Add the 0-1 home defeat by Manchester City on 13 September and the Atletico loss, in which Pablo Barrios scored inside 50 seconds and Leny Yoro was dismissed on 74 minutes, and United have not won since September. Carrick has two wins from ten matches across all competitions this season.
For Leeds, the afternoon was a near-miss rather than a breakthrough. They have not beaten United at Elland Road for 24 years and remain three points clear of them, having lost only once all season — away at Arsenal. Calvert-Lewin’s goal was his 12th in the Premier League at this ground, the third-highest tally by any player at a single venue behind Erling Haaland’s 19 at the Etihad and Igor Thiago’s 14. He has now scored in each of his last seven home league games.
Carrick’s credit, and how much is left
The symmetry is uncomfortable for United. Ruben Amorim was sacked on 5 January after a 1-1 draw with Leeds and a press conference in which he attacked director of football Jason Wilcox. Carrick replaced him, won his first match 2-0 against Manchester City in the derby, and was confirmed as permanent head coach on 22 May on a deal to June 2028 with an option for a further year. Nine months on, he has drawn 1-1 with Leeds and is managing a dressing room in which Martinez has criticised the same director.
What Carrick still has is internal support. Senior players have backed him publicly — Harry Maguire’s assessment was that “you can’t question the togetherness, the spirit, the fight,” before adding that “we’ve got to show a bit more quality with the ball” — and United are not expected to change manager mid-season, despite Antonio Conte’s name circulating.
Carrick’s own framing was that this was a floor rather than a ceiling. “I understand the situation doesn’t look great but I have no doubts we can go on a good run,” he said. The chance to start one comes on Wednesday, away at Como in the Champions League. A sixth game without a win is survivable. A seventh, against a side United would have been expected to beat in any recent season, would be considerably harder to insulate himself from — headphones or not.
Sports journalist and editor at SportsPortal.net. Covers cricket, football, Formula 1, tennis, and basketball with a focus on how global sports connect with Pakistani audiences. Follows the PSL, Pakistan national cricket team, Premier League, and major international tournaments. Has reported on sports for digital audiences since 2021.
1035 articles published
