United have rediscovered their former swagger following the arrival of interim manager Michael Carrick, who replaced former manager Ruben Amorim at the Theater of Dreams in January. In the nine games under the command of the English coach, the Red Devils have recorded seven wins and one loss.
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United are aiming for a top-four finish as they look to return to the Champions League next season. Carrick’s side are also six points ahead of Chelsea in sixth place, and a fifth-place finish would likely be enough to secure qualification for Europe’s premier club competition.
Meanwhile, this weekend’s victory also moved United seven points clear of Manchester City in second place in the league table. Former United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel believes the Red Devils can lead their bitter rivals to second place in the Premier League.
United are in better shape than City
Speaking on Viaplay, quoted by Metro, Schmeichel argued that United are in better shape compared to City. He said: “It’s been painful. We’ve had two periods of 27 and 26 years, hopefully we won’t wait that long (for the title). Manchester United are coming from not playing very well, not winning games and then suddenly playing better and having some really good games but getting some points on the board.”
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“I’m looking and I’m serious, I think we can catch Man City. I think we can do it. Our form is much better, our winning form is much better. If you put all that trust in the team, give the job to Michael Carrick. Let him pick the players he wants and I don’t think it’s necessarily that big of a gap to close. We could be talking about a year, two years, three years before they are competitive.”
While United still have to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge and Liverpool at home in the league before the end of the season, they are not involved in other competitions. The Red Devils’ relaxed schedule could work in their favor as they reach the end of the season.
Conversely, City have to face Chelsea, Arsenal and Aston Villa in the league, while also having to prepare for the EFL Cup final against the Gunners and the FA Cup quarter-final against Liverpool. They next face Real Madrid in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 later this week, so fatigue cannot be completely ruled out.
Meanwhile, Carrick began his caretaker tenure with an impressive 2-0 win over the Cityzens at Old Trafford in January. The Englishman will be in charge until the end of this campaign, but Schmeichel is convinced he is the right man for the permanent job.
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Michael Carrick’s managerial career statistics
Source: Wikipedia.
Carrick for a permanent job?
The former Danish goalkeeper urged United to make Carrick’s stay permanent. He said: “We’ve tried everything, we’ve tried all the big names, we’ve tried all the guys with smart systems. We’ve tried all that! Keep it simple. He knows the club and that would be simple for the players.”
“At the moment I’d say there are around 11 players who probably have a very long future at the club, so there’s a really big job there too. We don’t know how good Michael Carrick is at that, but what he’s done fantastically well is taking the players he had available and making them play some good football.”
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Final thoughts
United return to action on Friday, March 20, when they travel to the Vitality Stadium to take on Bournemouth, who sit 10th in the league. Despite their recent rise, the Red Devils cannot afford to become complacent and must ensure the reins of the top-four race remain firmly in their hands.
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