Every word of Michael Carrick’s Man City embargoed pre-match press conference | OneFootball

Michael Carrick says he “has to be careful” in the targets he sets himself at Manchester United.

Carrick was speaking in the embargoed section of the pre-match press conference ahead of tomorrow’s Manchester derby at Old Trafford, having assumed the role of interim head coach.

What are the season’s goals?

The first question of this section was “You’ve been appointed as head coach at the end of the season. There’s no mention of interim or caretaker. Have there been any discussions with you and the people here regarding a role beyond this season?”

Carrick answered: “No, not at the moment. I think we’re realistic as well, and where we are at the moment, why I’m here and the role I’ve got to do.”

“That doesn’t change how we go about it in the day-to-day, in the focus, and making decisions for the long term strategy of the group and the playing squad, and whatever that adds on extra in the layers after that. I’m certainly not coming in thinking it’s a time where week to week, game to game, we got to get through it and we got to take each one-off. I think we’re on a plan to improve and improve beyond this season.”

“However that looks at this moment, it’s all I can control is what we give the players and how we create the atmosphere around the group. So that’s the main focus. And then we’ll see what happens after that.”

He was then asked “if the chance came to carry on at the end of this season, would you be interested in doing that?”

“Listen, I’m here because I enjoy the role and I wanted to do it,” he answered. “And I’m hugely privileged to be in this position. So that’s where I am. It doesn’t change whatever the term or whatever the length. I’m here to do my best. And hopefully I’ve got a lot of experience of what it takes and where we need to get to, and I’ll try and help with that.”

The next question was a tough one. The reporter asked “You were here four and a bit years ago now in a similar role, albeit a short term one. I think to a lot of fans, the wider picture of the club feels the same. It feels like no progress has been made. There’s been managers come and go since then. There’s partly new ownership in. The fans are still protesting against them. I know your role is short term here, but how do you go about uniting a club where it feels that everyone’s on a different page at the moment? And I think to the fans, it feels a bit soulless and going nowhere. How can you make an influence on that?”

The Wallsend man replied: “I certainly don’t think it’s soulless. I think there’s a magic around this place. I feel at home straight away, coming into the building, coming in around it. I’ve obviously been around it for quite some time and then missed a little window. But I think there’s a magic around this place. You can’t help but feel that.”

“Results, and sometimes from the outside, things look a little bit different, but it certainly doesn’t feel majorly different on the inside, I have to say that. Listen, part of my role and the responsibility is shaping what we want to look like going forward as a group. What happens on the pitch and the tactical side and the performances is one thing, but certainly the culture as well and how we think, how we act, how we behave, what it means to us to be here. That’s something that is part of my responsibility to spread in the right way.”

How will he rebuild confidence?

A reporter then asked “when we spoke to Darren [Fletcher] on Sunday, he was talking about the players feeling a little fragile in terms of their confidence at the moment. What have you and your staff done this week to try and rebuild that confidence?”

“Obviously, I think a lot of confidence comes from… It’s funny, confidence, actually, because you can sometimes get it from a little moment or you can get a little situation, all of a sudden it sparks you,” he said. “And that’s sport, top-level sport. We’ve seen it throughout in every sport. When you’re confident and you’re in the zone and everything happens a little bit slower, but everything’s really clear and you’re calm.”

“I think sometimes when you want something so much and you’re so desperate that you can almost over-try and it over-effects you at times. So there’s that, there’s getting the balance of that. And listen, we’re here to support the players. We’re here to help them and we’re here to improve them. And we’re there by their side to get them through it. And hopefully they felt that over the last few days. And listen, we’ve had three days to prepare for the game, but we feel we’re in a good place and everyone’s looking forward to it.”

“Michael, the team you inherited from Ruben really struggled to put any winning runs together,” the next reporter said. “I think it was only when they beat Liverpool, Sunderland and Brighton in the October, it’s the only time they’ve ever won back-to-back games in the Premier League. How are you going to go about tackling that? Because if there’s a challenge to get to Europe, you’re going to need to win some games, but the team is showing itself capable of sustaining winning runs. How important is it? How are you going to tackle that?”

The boss replied: “Yeah, it’s a fresh start. I’ve got a lot of belief in the group, individually and collectively. I’ve got a lot of belief in that. As I’ve just said, confidence and a feeling. Things can go in a different direction very quickly. I’ve got a lot of belief in the boys. I’m not going to tell you everything about how we’re going to do it, because I’ll be a bit silly to do that. But I think tactically and as a team, what we want to look like and things that we feel can help us and be hugely positive.”

“And what we can achieve, I think is it half full, half empty. And so many times it gets what players can’t do or the team can’t do, but actually forget what they can do, what they’re good at and believe in that and work on the strengths and feed off that and feed that energy to make you better. There’s a lot of players and a lot of teams in the world that can’t do things, but that doesn’t stop them being successful. So we need to find that ingredient and I fully believe we can do that.”

Carrick was then asked what he makes of the culture in the club and whether it is something that needs to be addressed.

“I’ve been back in this role for three days and there’s nothing that I’ve looked at and that’s really red flagged anything, I have to say,” Carrick insisted. “The players have been really good, willing to listen, willing to learn, wanting to do better, wanting to do better for the club, wanting to put better performances in. That’s the feeling I’ve got, the support staff. Everyone is desperate to do well, as I’ve just said. We need to channel that. We need to channel that.”

“And of course, listen, the culture is something that is what happens day to day. It’s not something I sit here and talk about and a few words here and there, and it makes it sound good. It’s how you behave and what you end up doing day to day. So that’s something we got to build. But certainly at the moment, I feel it’s a good place. And the training grounds has been a really good place. We need to make Old Trafford tomorrow an even better place with the help of the supporters as well. And that’s the magic of what we’re trying to do.”

Is success Champions League qualification?

Would he consider it a failure if United do not qualify for the Champions League this season?

“I’ve got to be careful about what’s a success and what’s a failure in terms of so cleanly like that,” he replied. “I think it’s not as clear-cut as that. I think success is building and improving. There’s no getting away from the fact that this club should be there. We can talk all day about where you should be, but it’s how are you going to get there? You got to earn it. You got to prove that you’re good enough to get there.”

“So that’s the challenge for us. And it always has been that. And that doesn’t change. It doesn’t change the motivation, the drive, and it doesn’t change the expectation. And it shouldn’t change the expectation. Certainly, there’s a bit of realism from me, but I’m definitely not going in ‘it’s all or nothing’. But we need to improve and we need to keep up the league.”

Won’t it be a result considering the turmoil?

“No, that’s what I mean,” he said. “There’s a lot to play for. There’s a huge encouragement, there’s a huge positivity from me and around the group. I know it’s the league we’ve got to focus on. It’s a carrot, of course it is, but it doesn’t mean it’s all or nothing. That’s the thing. It doesn’t have to be so extreme. We need to build and we need to take steps. I’m not yet to say everything’s going to be perfect, but that’s not realistic either. But we’ll take small steps and we need to keep going in that I’m in that direction.”

The next reporter said: “I want to completely respect your record in the Championship in Middlesbrough. You’ve only managed at this level for three games. Very successful when you did that. I think two wins and a draw. What makes you very confident you can handle this job? Because it’s Manchester United, you’ve not really had the length or the breadth of experience you’re about to have, the number of games?”

Carrick answered: “I’ve never really thought about it like that. I just feel comfortable. I feel at home. Not comfortable in the fact where it’s nice and everything’s great. It’s comfortable in the fact that I’m happy in my skin, happy in this role. I know what it takes. I’ve worked closely with Jose and Ole for some time, so when I took over, it felt quite a natural step. I understand the questions, and that’s how it is. You always question until you achieve something. So that’s how it is. But all I can say is I feel at home. I feel I’m ready and really looking forward to getting to work.”

Is he given direction on how the team should play by Jason Wilcox?

Finally, Carrick was asked whether he had “had any conversations around the type of team that” Jason Wilcox and INEOS want to see, given the fact that it was a source of tension for the previous manager, Ruben Amorim.

“Nothing different to any other team in terms of putting players on the pitch that we think will fit in a good balance and depending on who we’re playing against, what it looks like, where’s our strength,” he explained. “That’s it. That’s on me and my coaches and the staff to put that together. I’m flexible at times. As I said, we’ve been in here three days, so it’s a big game. Playing against a tough team, obviously. A very good team, playing well. So there’s challenges within that. But it’s obviously up to me and my staff to find that formula.”

Every word of the first section of the presser is available here.

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