Schmeichel: Carrick call instantly paid off with ‘fantastic’ star who has to be a mainstay for the rest of the season

Peter Schmeichel was delighted to see Manchester United come out on top via such an enthralling performance in the Manchester derby.While the former shot-stopper did represent both sides of the historic rivalry in his playing career, he has maintained his love for the Red Devils over their noisy neighbours since hanging up his gloves.How the Reds fared vs Manchester City(Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)On Saturday afternoon, the Reds ran riot at Old Trafford, putting the ball in Gianluigi Donnarumma’s net five times across the 90-minute affair – albeit only two stood thanks to VAR’s controversial intervention.Two were still enough for United to claim maximum points on their home soil, which meant that Michael Carrick kick-started his interim tenure in the most emphatic way possible.He made a bold call ahead of kick-off by instantly restoring Amad Diallo and Bryan Mbeumo to his starting XI following their recent returns from the African Cup of Nations.Benjamin Sesko and Matheus Cunha were sacrificed to make way for their teammates, despite the former scoring three goals in his last two appearances in all competitions.It was a move that soon paid off, however, as Amad and Mbeumo were lighting up the pitch with their attacking exploits, and it was the Cameroonian who opened the scoring in the 65th minute to lift the roof off the stadium.Schmeichel: Mbeumo ‘fantastic’, Carrick made right call(Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)Reacting to the display, Schmeichel said, as per the Premier League’s official website (h/t UtdDistrict): “This was fantastic. We talked about before the game: ‘Can you make a change to these players?’“What he’s [Carrick] done today; he’s picked the right players, gone about the right games. Mbeumo’s being fantastic.“For the first time in a very, very long time, it was an [absolute] joy to watch Man United. It’s everything I wanted it to be today.”Next up for Carrick and his men is a trip to face league leaders Arsenal on Sunday in a 4.30pm kick-off.