Poor Michael Carrick. The Manchester United coach looked dejected after his team’s 2-0 away loss to Chelsea in the Premier League.
“We should’ve been up in the first half,” he said. “It was as positive as we could’ve hoped for.”
It was. Carrick’s United, fresh off a 4-1 loss to Como in the Champions League, a 3-0 loss to Bournemouth in the Premier League and reports of serious fractures within the dressing room, needed a strong performance against Chelsea to change its narrative. A win would’ve been ideal, but a draw or a hard-fought loss would’ve done the trick, too. That’s how dire United’s situation was before kickoff: dire enough that the winningest team in Premier League history would’ve pleased its fans by simply, you know, trying its best.
In the first half, United did try. It threw everything it had at Chelsea through its makeshift, injury-ridden front four of Matheus Cunha, Bruno Fernandes, Amad Diallo and Brian Mbeumo. Carrick’s men didn’t exactly look like world-beaters out there, but they looked competent and committed, and their performance seemed to validate reports that Carrick had repaired his relationship with the team.
In the 63rd minute, the axe finally fell: not with a dramatic, ego-fueled implosion, but with two thoughtless challenges from defender Lisandro Martinez. The Argentine center back conceded a penalty and got himself sent off, sending United and Carrick further down their doom spiral. All that work, all that effort, all that soul-crushing “let’s just try our best” from one of world soccer’s most valuable teams evaporated with Martinez’s careless challenge.
