Abhranil Roy
Michael Carrick has been at the heart of Manchester United’s midfield for more than a decade, and now at the age of 34, he is finally showing a slump in form. Unfortunately for the Red Devils, it couldn’t come at a worse timing. The club has been in the midst of a sharp decline ever since Fergie’s departure, and all efforts to arrest the slide have failed so far. Under such circumstances, United desperately needed someone of Carrick’s stature to provide the stability and leadership in the midfield, but the former Tottenham man has failed in that department so far. Despite having played most of his career in the central midfield role, Carrick has also been deployed as a centre back by Louis van Gaal due to injuries to Chris Smalling, Phil Jones and Marcos Rojo, and that move hasn’t really done the man a lot of good either.
This Season:
Carrick has made 21 appearances so far this season and has created just 7 chances. With a pass accuracy of 86%, one may be duped into believing that he has seen a majority of United’s buildup, but barring a few odd games, most of his passing has been sideways or backwards. Although the English pass master is still a critical part of United’s midfield, yet his advanced age means he is now also finding it hard to run and press the opposition, something which is an integral part of any modern day midfielder’s game. He has won just 49% of the duels and with an average pass length of 19 m, he is far, far from the Carrick whose name would be chanted at every home game.
Future:
Michael Carrick has been a wonderful servant to the club and has won it all, but the time has come to let go of him and look for younger and better alternatives of his mould, like a Paul Pogba or Marco Verrati. His contract expires this summer, and we hope the Red Devils go into the market looking for more reliable options.
