“That is the reward”: Delighted Carrick lavishes praise on this United coach for stunning set-piece goal vs Spurs

Michael Carrick has already done something his predecessor, Ruben Amorim, failed to achieve in 18 months — win four games on the trot. Manchester United dispatched 10-man Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 at Old Trafford on Saturday, courtesy of goals from Bryan Mbeumo and Bruno Fernandes in either half. What was most impressive about the three points was the manner of the victory. The hosts have often struggled against low blocks in the recent past. Going down to 10 men can make things trickier, as the team saw against Everton, succumbing to a humiliating 0-1 loss at home in the end. Winning vs a low block But not under Carrick. The home side kept plugging away without losing their cool, and were eventually rewarded in the end. The legendary former United midfielder alluded to the same during his post-match interaction with TNT Sports (via NBC Sports), praising his players for managing the game so well. “When it goes to 10 men it is always a tricky kind of situation. I thought it was quite an open game in the first half at times. I thought we looked dangerous right from the start of the game which was really pleasing again. “Had a few issues where I thought Tottenham played some really good football first half so we had to solve a few things. Michael Carrick lauds mentality “Going a goal up against 10 men I thought the second half we managed it really well and largely in control, always wanting the second goal to come along and when it did that put us in a really good position. It was nice, nice to get players on the pitch, young Tyler coming on for his first game, all in all it was a really positive day.” The opening goal was a thing of beauty, as Mbeumo scored from a clever set-piece routine straight from the training ground. The goal was almost a reminder that not all set-piece goals are about crowing the goalkeeper, something Arsenal are currently known for. And Michael Carrick praised first-team coach Jonny Evans for the maneuver. Set-piece goal “I wouldn’t say he’s (Evans) the set-piece coach but he’s got an eye on it, as we all have, but Jonny has been doing a lot of work with the players so that is the rewards for that. Delighted. “We go in to every game with some ideas, every team does, but when you see it come off as good as that and as important as that first goal was massive. It shows you how important it can be.” United have a glorious chance to make it five out of five when they meet West Ham United away from home on Tuesday. Hopefully, they can capitalise. Feature image Carl Recine 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 Ayantan Chowdhury After failing to become a professional footballer, Ayantan switched to the next best thing: writing about the greatest football club in the world. He has extensive sports journalism experience, having worked for over 10 years in the Indian sports media industry, writing for the biggest newspapers and websites. Currently an editor at The Peoples Person. You can follow him on X: @ayantanc_25