LONDON: Manchester United manager Michael Carrick insists he has no doubts about Lisandro Martinez’s commitment despite the defender’s controversial criticism of the club’s management before a disappointing performance against Chelsea.
Martinez was shown a red card at Stamford Bridge after committing a foul that awarded Chelsea a penalty to give them a 2-0 lead.
In the past month, the Argentina international has also been responsible for Tottenham’s late equaliser in a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford, as well as criticising United’s Director of Football, Jason Wilcox, after a 2-0 defeat to Atletico Madrid.
The 28-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season, sparking speculation that his behaviour, both on and off the pitch, is linked to a desire to leave the club.
However, Carrick has stuck by Martinez and believes the World Cup winner is determined to return to his best form.
“I have absolutely no doubts about his commitment.
“The atmosphere in the dressing room is very good. I’ve said it before, I’ve never questioned the players’ commitment to the club, to me and to each other.
“We need to play better and make better decisions, but commitment is not an issue at all,” Carrick said at a press conference yesterday.
Carrick is now under immense pressure after United went nine games without a win.
The club’s top management is expected to assess its position during the international break after matches against Roma and Aston Villa this week.
The 45-year-old manager is currently in a precarious position, but has chosen to remain positive ahead of two matches that could determine his future at Old Trafford.
LONDON: Michael Carrick expects to remain in charge of Manchester United for Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Roma despite his side’s 2-0 defeat to Chelsea, extending the club’s winless run to nine matches.
Carrick was previously given the opportunity to continue managing the team by United’s top management after the 0-3 home defeat to Bournemouth last week, when many expected the former England midfielder to be sacked.
United showed a marked improvement in the first half at Stamford Bridge but a failure to convert chances saw them squander several chances to take the lead.
Morgan Rogers then easily got past the United defence before opening the scoring early in the second half.
Lisandro Martinez was then shown two yellow cards in a short period of time and awarded Chelsea a penalty which was converted by Cole Palmer, thus destroying United’s hopes of a comeback.
“Yes,” Carrick told TNT Sports when asked if he expected to continue in charge for the match against Roma.
“We need to keep moving forward. We need to take what we felt was successful in today’s match, build confidence and maintain a lot of positive aspects, especially in the first half.”
United’s longest winless run in 38 years sees them now just one point above the Premier League relegation zone and at risk of falling into the bottom three by the end of this week.
“After being in such a good position in the first half, these two halves of the game were very different,” said Carrick.
“I think the way the players played, the quality of the game and our performance in the first half really gave us a boost. We have to take those positives.”
Two defeats in the first three matches of the Champions League see United now in 20th place out of 36 teams and facing the risk of failing to advance to the knockout stages.
MANCHESTER: Manchester United manager Michael Carrick and team captain Bruno Fernandes held a meeting to ease tensions following the club’s performance crisis, according to several media reports yesterday.
Carrick and Fernandes met at United’s Carrington training ground in separate talks from a meeting involving the entire squad to find a way out of the team’s current crisis, the Press Association reported.
Fernandes was seen questioning Carrick’s tactics after the 1-4 defeat to Como in the Champions League last week.
The Portuguese midfielder was then dropped from the starting line-up when United faced Bournemouth in the English Premier League (EPL) last Sunday, and instead remained on the bench throughout the match as his team were humiliated 0-3.
However, after the meeting, Fernandes is now considered ready to play against Chelsea away this Saturday, according to media reports.
The defeat to Bournemouth saw United drop to 16th place in the EPL with only one league win this season, which was against newly promoted Ipswich.
Many observers expected Carrick to be sacked following the defeat, but the 45-year-old coach remained in charge of training on Wednesday after the club decided to give him more time to improve the team’s performance.
Fernandes became the second player in two weeks to publicly criticize the team during a post-match interview.
Previously, Lisandro Martinez also targeted criticism of the club’s top management through a controversial interview after the 0-2 defeat to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League on October 13.
Carrick took over the team in January and managed to stabilize the club’s situation after the often turbulent Ruben Amorim era, before guiding United to finish the season in third place and return to the Champions League.
The popular former United midfielder was then handed a two-year contract last summer.
However, just five months after signing the contract, Carrick’s position is now a serious concern as United have only won two of 12 matches in all competitions, against Ipswich and Champions League dwarf club Sabah.
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