Manchester United needs as much as they can get from Michael Carrick.
Right Now.
Now more than ever.
Year one of the David Moyes regime has been rather difficult thus far, and the news of Marouane Fellaini’s wrist injury has made it an even rougher road.
Of course, Fellaini’s injury can’t be that all serious if he’s playing for Belgium Friday.
Still, Man U is now left with depleted depth in central midfield, and overly reliant anew on the pairing of Tom Cleverley and Michael Carrick. When Moyes took over for Sir Alex Ferguson, he probably didn’t expect that Carrick would be so critical to the success of this squad. People would rather talk (and of course write about) the higher profile players of United: Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney and Robin Van Persie. However, Michael Carrick has been an overlooked cog in the machine. He’s an underrated, but key contributor.
Carrick has been a senior midfielders at Old Trafford for some time. The 32-year-old has been with the Red Devils for eight seasons. Carrick has “been there before,” he’s a steady veteran presence that can help maintain the composure for the team’s midfield; a position that has somewhat contributed to the unexpected struggles United has had this season.
When Michael Carrick arrived, it was the same exact season that Ferguson thwarted Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea side a third consecutive title. And he was an integral part of that team. Right now United has a significant amount of time to get healthy and figure things out. The next match is a week from Saturday versus Southampton in Premier League play.
Paul M. Banks is the owner of The Sports Bank.net, an affiliate of Fox Sports. An analyst for 95.7 The Fan and 1620 The Zone, he also writes for Chicago Now. Follow him on Twitter (@paulmbanks), Facebook, and RSS