Carrick is ready to unleash red-hot Sesko against Crystal Palace, but there’s one major concern – opinion

For much of Manchester United’s unlovely win at Everton there was a disturbing continuity from the hard-fought draw at West Ham, the narrowly-avoided East London banana skin which threatened Michael Carrick’s impeccable record in the United dugout. It was evident in the inexplicably heavy legs across the park, in the listless lack of creativity in the face of a well-organised defence. But it was also there in the name of the United goalscorer, and in the fact that he once again came off the bench. Supersub Sesko Benjamin Sesko followed his exquisite injury time equaliser at West Ham with a thundering finish to secure the win against Everton, making it two goals in two games. Or to be precise, two goals from 53 minutes of football. Six games into his interim reign as United’s interim head coach Carrick is yet to hand the 22-year-old a start, instead choosing to spread his 93 minutes of gametime across five matches. That he has scored three in that time, two winners and an equaliser directly securing five points for United, leaves him joint top-scorer of the Carrick era alongside permanent starter Bryan Mbeumo. Time to start Using the Slovenian as a supersub is clearly working wonders for United, but it’s not unreasonable to suggest that he has done enough to deserve a start – particularly given that he joined for a first-team transfer fee which could rise to £73m. It’s a view echoing through the fanbase, with many frustrated to see him on the bench once again for the trip to Everton, and also shared by Gary Neville. Carrick has been a model of consistency with his starting lineups so far, tweaking it only in the face of injury to key players. But with his preferred frontline looking tired, it may well be time for him to turn to the in-form forward on the bench. Note of caution With three goals in 93 minutes under Carrick (as per transfermarkt), the inescapable data-focused analysis produces the unspoken expectation of a hat-trick at the weekend should he play the full match. This sits somewhere between hyperbole and errant nonsense, however there will certainly be a sense of anticlimax if he doesn’t score against Palace. They are a team in turmoil with only two league wins this calendar year, but given United’s penchant for breezing past high-fliers only to stumble against bottom-half opposition this absolutely does not make the game a foregone conclusion. Perfect storm The relative form of Sesko and Palace therefore creates a perfect storm for disappointment just as much as it does for glory. Sesko has already proven himself to be a level above the hapless Rasmus Hojlund, who ran out goodwill long before leaving on loan, but fans must avoid reactionary comparisons if he plays his way into the starting XI only to blank when he gets there. Of course, Carrick may stick to his guns and lean further into the Sesko-as-modern-day-Solskjaer trope. It would be frustrating, but he clearly has a great relationship with the Slovenian and a solid idea of what to do with the squad. Whatever happens, the 22-year-old has a United future extending far beyond the end of the month, and if his purple patch ends it must be seen as a blip, not a catastrophe. Featured image Gareth Copley via Getty Images The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Joe Ponting Joe has spent more than half his life writing about football and all of it following United. As a child he told a doctor his name was ‘Paul Scholes’, but could never pick a pass like him no matter how much he tried. He cut his teeth working in print media for local newspapers and entered football journalism covering the grassroots game for the Non-League Paper. Here he achieved a career high, interviewing United legend Sir Bobby Charlton to get his views on the lower echelons of the football pyramid. To kill time during international breaks Joe writes album reviews and has strong views on post punk for Plus One Magazine.