A defiant Michael Carrick has insisted there is no divide in the Manchester United dressing room and backed himself to turn things around at Old Trafford amid growing uncertainty over his future. The under-pressure United head coach began his news conference with an emotional statement lasting more than five minutes, admitting "we've lost our way" as he called on his players to "respect the club". United are winless in their last seven matches, their worst run since 2015, and those problems have spilled out beyond the pitch with captain Bruno Fernandes and Lisandro Martinez airing their frustrations publicly over the last fortnight.
Put to him that it feels like the dressing room is divided, Carrick said: "It's not divided. We just need to get back to doing what we do best. And we will." Fernandes questioned the tactics employed by United's staff in the crushing 4-1 Champions League defeat at Como in a move that has been widely criticised by former players.
Asked if he would punish Fernandes by stripping him of the captaincy or dropping him, Carrick said: "The most important thing for me is the team and the dynamics in the squad. It is about the football club. "Whatever the situation is I will always do what is best for the football club." Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Carrick refused to confirm if he had spoken to Fernandes, preferring to keep his conversations with his skipper private, but did say he had spoken to the hierarchy, who are understood to be increasingly concerned about the team's form.
"It is pretty obvious how we are all feeling," said Carrick, whose side are on a seven-match winless run. "The responsibility for me to be in this position is to lead. It is my responsibily what goes on in the pitch.
"I will hold that umbrella for me to get wet and everyone else to stay dry. That is the privileged position I am in." "I'll start today. Just want to say a few things, really.
"Recently we haven't had a good time, that's pretty obvious. I totally accept that, what we're going through at the moment. We had five months of relative success in a spell where I was happy with a lot of things that I was seeing and that we were doing as a team.
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