Brazil can count themselves lucky to escape with a draw against Morocco in a game that raises Michael Carrick’s stock.
After steering Man Utd into the Champions League, Michael Carrick’s star is already shining brightly.
Next season will be key, but he’s still not getting enough credit for what he’s already achieved with this team, considering the situation he walked into.
That is clearer than ever after watching Brazil vs Morocco, where his tactical brilliance shone through.
Carrick says Top 5 isn’t enough. Honestly, based on his run, do you think we are a genuine Title Contender for next season?
Michael Carrick empowered a limited Casemiro
A bad manager can make good players look limited, and a good manager can empower his limited players to make them great.
If Ruben Amorim’s time at Old Trafford was dictated by the former, Carrick has been the opposite.
After watching Casemiro huff and puff his way to 45 minutes of poor football against Morocco, it’s clearer than ever how Carrick made him look better than he is at this stage of his career.
Without Carrick’s structure minimising the spaces he needs to cover, Casemiro was back to the Erik ten Hag and Amorim version of getting overrun in midfield.
Carrick kept the defensive lines closed together, and the horizontal spaces were nullified with a narrow mid-block to funnel attacks out wide.
It resulted in Casemiro finding freedom to crash the box and run less, but see the ball more.
His role at United was limited to patrolling a singular midfield zone where he thrived with his tackling and interception ability.
As soon as the game gets stretched and he’s forced to cover large spaces on the pitch, his age catches up to him, and the midfield becomes empty.
Man Utd fans are only too familiar with this visual of an overextended Casemiro running around haplessly to plug the gaps his brain identifies, but his body doesn’t cooperate anymore.
Carrick’s pragmatism was disrespected
Carrick’s basic approach after taking over was disrespected and written off as a lack of tactical knowledge.
Who is YOUR ‘one to watch’ pick for Man Utd next season?👀
Kobbie Mainoo and Leny Yoro both say Patrick Dorgu, but who is yours?
In reality, he was trying to maximise the squad he had at his disposal, even if it meant going back to the basics and simplifying everyone’s role.
That’s the sign of an elite manager. He clearly has a well-defined style of play on the front foot, but he’s equally as capable of identifying what he has at his disposal and using it perfectly.
It was easy to blame Casemiro’s age and a lack of midfield depth for bad results last season, but Carrick overachieved by showing tactical brilliance.
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