‘He’s too slow’, ‘He passes the ball back and sideways’, ‘He’s not Roy Keane’ – Michael Carrick is never short of comments telling him what he is and what he isn’t but I tell you something, Carrick is developing into a fine footballer.
When he signed in the summer of 2006 for a reported £18.6 Million did I think the price was inflated? Sure, but then I thought the transfer of Buffon to Juventus for £32Million was inflated, the same as Luis Figo to Real Madrid for £39Million and the same as Rio Ferdinand from Leeds to United for £29Million – all of which have been a huge success for the clubs that bought them.
Buffon…living up to his Italian translation
Carrick was superb against Citeh today, he really was. He passed the ball immaculately and spread ball really well. He has come into some really good form as of late and I really do feel he has stepped up a gear from last season. He does have unfair comparisons to Roy Keane as they are two totally different footballers. Keane was a leader, a determined box to box midfielder who took no prisoners, Carrick – you could argue – lacks a number of these qualities. However, I would argue that Carrick’s composure and passing ability surpasses even Roy Keane.
When Michael Carrick realises that he can actually dictate games with his passing ability and craft, more people may start to take note. Yes he doesn’t drive forward like a Michael Ballack or have the ability, like Scholes, to turn up late in the box and smash one home but what he gives United has been missing since he injured himself against Newcastle and then against Liverpool.
For me, he was MOTM against Citeh today and fully deserves any praise he receives. He doesn’t have the same qualities as Keane, only the same shirt. The way United have evolved since the last days of Keane has been sensational. Keane questioned the managers purchasing policy in the infamous MUTV interview, which has never been aired. Many United fans raised eyebrows at the purchase of Carrick from Tottenham Hotspurs, who bought Carrick from West Ham United for around £3.75Million. It may have taken a while for some fans to appreciate what Michael Carrick does for the side but surely now it is evident how important he is for United?
Carrick was sensational today and over the last 12 months his confidence has grown to an extent that he is starting to run games.
It’s unfair that he was labelled the replacement for Keane as it’s very difficult to find two players who have exactly the same abilities. This is why I think Carrick and Anderson compliment each other so wonderfully, the contrast and mix of abilities, Anderson’s box to box hustle kind of play, Carrick’s dictating presence.
Carrick is shit. Not good enough for United and we should sell him to Wigan or somewhere like that. We need Pirlo or Riquleme in that role.
Carrick once again proved how important he is to the side. For me carrick is one of the 1st names i would put on the team sheet, he is improving every game it seems. People who dont rate this guy need to go to specsavers 🙂
# Rooney_Magic Says:
November 30th, 2008 at 2:58 pm
Carrick is shit. Not good enough for United and we should sell him to Wigan or somewhere like that. We need Pirlo or Riquleme in that role.
this clearly shows the man doesnt know first thing about football carrick obviously is a great playar sure there are better ones out there but he clearly can play at the highest level and iff he would be paired with a decent attacking midfilder (scholes, anderson iff he scores a goal one day) they will clearly run the midfield area
till now i havnt seen him launch 60-70 yard passes like scholes and he gives the ball away cheaply sometimes .he is more of a distributer to ppl who can make goals rather than a creative mid and for 18mil thats tooo little
Carrick is one of our most important players. He has the ability to make it look easy. His passing is second to none and because of his superb positional sense he is also a very good defensive midfielder, even though he’s not a fierce tackler (a la Keane/Gattuso).
Good article, I take a bit of umbrage with the word ‘developing’ though, we have won the title for the last two seasons and the first one of those I thought Carrick was phenomenal and he’s got better since because no longer can someone like Kaka run a agame against him. He’s second only to Gerrard as a central midfielder in this country but it would seem that unfortunately as a by-product of United’s success we attract muppet supporters who have clearly never kicked a ball in their lives. ‘Rooney-magic’ bandying around some players he’s heard of who he thinks are better, have you watched pirlo and riquelme playing recently? I can’t believe there are United fans out there who really think Carrick is average and that he’s just exploded on to the scene in the last couple of weeks, he has been the hub of our midfield for two and a bit years now, 60 and 70 yard passes look great but it’s Carrick’s control, composure, feet and vision which are priceless and no-one in Europe is better than him in these aspects of the game. Oh, and he’s English and so has grown up with the premiership, understanding the history of the club and its stature and is therefore never likely to leave or cause trouble unlike another foreign mercenary that we bring in. Our domestic players have long been the backbone of United’s success and it shouldn’t be under-estimated the stability they bring to the club you muppet Rooney-magic…Pirlo or Riquelme? You’re either really funny or really stupid, you can decide….
Good comment, Jake. Couldn’t agree more.