After the corresponding match last season, Ruben Amorim gave the explosive press conference which triggered his exclusion within 24 hours.
This time it was Lisandro Martinez who lit the paper before the match, criticizing sporting director Jason Wilcox and the United hierarchy for failing, he said, to recruit effectively during the summer.
Wilcox was in the stands at Elland Road, while Martinez began the match having apologized for the timing and forum of his attack rather than the words themselves.
To underline the general view that United failed Carrick by failing to provide competition for Luke Shaw at left-back, Diogo Dalot became the fifth different player to start in that position this season.
It remains to be seen whether Shaw will be fit enough for Wednesday’s Champions League trip to Serie A side Como, but repeated changes cannot help Carrick.
Martinez came off at half-time with a thigh injury, and Matthijs de Ligt’s fitness is such after almost 11 months out with a back problem that Carrick preferred to call on full-back Noussair Mazraoui rather than the Netherlands international.
Carrick’s side finished the match in 13th place in the Premier League table, with the possibility of falling further before the end of the match.
Unlike Amorim, Carrick found it easy to give a positive outlook on the current situation.
“It felt like a fresh start today, to be honest, with where we are – accepting it and doing something about it,” Carrick said.
“I don’t accept it because everything is fine, far from it. I’m realistic with that.
“But sometimes you struggle. Sometimes there comes a time when you have to find a way to get through it.
“There has been a cycle here at times over a period of time where it can go in different directions. We have to be stable enough to continue to do the right things. We are more than capable of winning football games.
“I understand that the situation doesn’t look very good if you look at it from a certain point of view, but I have no doubt that we can have a good run.”
Gn sports
