The noise in the Premier League was focused elsewhere for the last two weeks of the international break, allowing a glorious silence to drift across Manchester United. Without Manchester City’s woes, Michael Carrick may have faced a more difficult time, with plenty to review in regards to the first five games of the season. United sit solemnly in 12th with only one league win, and misery needs company.
The hosts will find just that at Old Trafford on Saturday evening. Tottenham, bottom of the Premier League, visit, with both sides hoping to kickstart their season. Spurs have secured a measly two points after a summer where £300m was spent on Roberto De Zerbi’s rebuild but the architect’s drawings are already at risk of being set alight.
For Carrick and United, beating the worst team in the league is close to a necessity as they enter a very difficult run of fixtures. October is theoretically and practically problematic for United, who have six fixtures this month, with away games against Leeds, Atlético Madrid, Como and Chelsea, who play a variety of styles that need preparing for, making a home game against Spurs a must-win. On paper, the second easiest game of the month is Bournemouth at home.
Carrick has plenty of credit in the bank from his work in the second half of last season, and will be afforded as much time as possible to get things right because no one is eager for another mid-season change of manager. United need to be in a better position by the end of October than they started it, which will require significant improvement on the pitch. For Carrick there are plenty of small margins he can point to.
The opening-day defeat at Hull was a grisly performance and worthy of criticism; Ipswich were eventually dispatched, while the derby was a tight and controversial loss, coming between two draws. The truth of the matter is United know they need to be better in both boxes. United have conceded fewer opposition touches in their box than any other team in the league but, on the other hand, they are the only side yet to keep a clean sheet.
They can also boast the most touches in opposition boxes but are largely incapable of killing matches off. United, like Tottenham, are very good at dominating possession, averaging 60% per match, but cannot translate that to goals and points. Even in the victory against Ipswich, United were unable to put a full 90 minutes of composure together, relying on Bruno Fernandes to drag them through against a promoted side.
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