Michael Carrick Unfazed by Criticism as Manchester United Head Coach

MANCHESTER, England — Michael Carrick has expressed that he is “not bothered” by the recent personal criticism from Roy Keane following his appointment as the head coach of Manchester United.

Carrick has officially taken the reins at Old Trafford until the end of the season, with his first match being the highly anticipated derby against Manchester City this Saturday.

Just three days into his new role, Carrick found himself under scrutiny from the former United captain, who remarked that Carrick’s wife, Lisa, “is probably doing the team talk.” This comment referenced an incident from 2014, when Lisa publicly defended her husband on social media after he faced criticism for his performance in a 2-0 defeat to Olympiacos in the UEFA Champions League.

Carrick, however, dismissed the noise from former players as “irrelevant.” He stated, “It didn’t bother me when asked about Keane’s comments. [Former players] are not putting more pressure on me; I don’t feel that. There are plenty of opinions around, some positive and some not. It’s totally irrelevant in terms of what I focus on. I know what we want to improve on and how we want to work with the players. There’s a lot that can be said; it’s the way of the world. I’m not going to pay too much attention to that. For me, the players and staff, it’s a focus on how we’re going to succeed.”

Carrick returns to Manchester United more than four years after his brief stint as caretaker manager in 2021. He has previously served as a coach under José Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjær, and he briefly stepped in between Solskjær’s dismissal and Ralf Rangnick’s appointment.

Expressing his enthusiasm for his new role, Carrick said, “It’s fantastic to be here. It’s a great feeling to be in this position. I’ve had different roles and have fallen in love with the club. I’m fully aware of the position I’m in. I’m eager to succeed; we’ve got a big job to do. We’ve got to win games, play well, and do it in a certain way.”