Key events
Michael Carrick: “A big challenge, it’s what you expect. They’ve had a very good start to the season. We want to be in this competition to challenge ourselves against good teams. It’s a big night for us.
“We have to pick a team, we’ve got good players. We’ve made a decision for tonight.
“We’ve got some really good midfielders with different strengths. We think it’s a good time to put Kobbie back in with the attributes him and Baleba have.”
Gorton-born Butt on TV and another one on the blog. A big day for east Manchester. Both quite critical of United at the moment.
Gene Salorio asks: “So now that Nuno is back on the market, does he get a ticket to the Manchester United new manager sweepstakes?”
NO!
Ashley Young suggests if Michael Carrick is forced out, then Jason Wilcox should go too.
Something I have suggested, too, and being on this blog is mainly about promoting your own work.
The great John Brewin wrote about how Manchester United have become unmanageable.
Busby and Ferguson built the club around themselves, possessing the charisma to convince others that theirs was the path to follow. Carrick, an insider, a club man, is falling victim to the same isolation as his predecessors in failure. Bruno Fernandes and Lisandro Martínez going off-piste in TV interviews to depth charge Carrick were actually following club tradition. With glamour comes decadence, the faded grandeur that has so often chased a United manager out the door.
Bit of fun among the team news … Martinez is dropped, allowing us all to guess how the United back four will start off. I feel Yoro deserves a go at centre-back but I will almost certainly be wrong.
Roma are giving a debut to third-choice goalkeeper Devis Vásquez, who is a 28-year-old who once had a loan at Sheffield Wednesday.
Starting lineups
Manchester United (4-2-3-1): Lammens; Dalot, Yoro, Maguire, Heaven; Baleba, Mainoo; Diallo, Cunha, Fernandes; Mbeumo
Subs: Darlow, Heaton, Amass, De Ligt, Martinez, Mazraoui, Santos, Mount, T Fletcher, Tielemans, Lacey, Zirkzee
Roma (3-4–2-1): Vazquez; Mancini, Balerdi, Hermoso; Rensch, Cristante, De Roon, Wesley; Soule, Rodrigo Mora; Malen
Subs: De Marzi, Koulierakis, N’Dicka, Castro, Molina, Pisilli, Di Nunzio, Lulli, Ghilardi
Ayden Heaven was put up for the pre-match interview – don’t worry he did not say anything on note. The Amazon pundits are perplexed that the young defender forced to face the cameras, with Ashley Young and Wayne Rooney wanting someone more senior to take responsibility.
Roma sit one place above Como in Serie A, which should worry United.
I went to see Michael Carrick yesterday for a bit of knockabout fun.
Preamble
Is this the day Manchester United finally turn their season around and save Michael Carrick’s job? Probably not. The manager is eagerly looking forward to this game despite not winning in nine, sitting 17th in the Premier League and coming into this clash with Roma off the back of two Champions League defeats. Life is not easy for Carrick because he has not fit left-back nor a decent striker available to him, so what can Big Sir Jim really expect?
Carrick, if we are being honest, has until the final whistle on Sunday – when Aston Villa are in town – to show he can lead United forward. Anything other than two wins this week will almost certainly seal his fate. There were promising signs against Chelsea but that soon unravelled.
At the very least, Carrick fronts up amid the misery. Those above him say absolutely nothing but must also fear for their futures after a desperate season thus far.
Kick-off: 8pm GMT
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