Manchester United drew 1-1 with Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford on Saturday, as Dominic Solanke struck in the 92nd minute to cancel out Bryan Mbeumo‘s second-half goal. Spurs had been down to 10 men since Rodrigo Bentancur was sent off for head-butting Luke Shaw.
The home fans had arrived hoping to enjoy themselves at Manchester City‘s expense, and they sang loudly about their neighbors’ scandal before kickoff. When United took the lead through Mbeumo midway through the second half, they added a dig at Spurs with a chant of “You’re going down with the City.” But by the time referee Stuart Attwell blew the final whistle, the fans had moved on. As they left the stadium, they talked about how Tottenham had managed to equalize.
Carrick admitted his side had not played well. “Massively disappointed with the result for sure,” Carrick said afterward. “A mixed performance, to be totally honest. I think it was tough. It was challenging for the first period, definitely.”
He also pointed to a clear improvement after the break. “There was a big improvement through the second half as it progressed and we put ourselves in such a good position towards the end of the game. To then not see it through — we should find a way of seeing that through.”
Another late collapse
The result leaves United with their worst start after six games since 1986, and the spotlight will fall on Carrick. He has not blamed his players publicly, and he did not do so again in his post-match news conference, but he has every right to expect more from his team.
Solanke’s header was the third time this season that United have conceded in stoppage time. Two of those goals, against Everton and Tottenham, have cost them four points. “It’s a couple of times now when — different ways, obviously — that’s two late, late goals against us to throw away two wins really,” Carrick said. “That changes a lot of things, you know. It changes a lot of feelings for ourselves and it changes points and what [the table] looks like. We need to do better with seeing out games, that’s for sure, once we get ourselves in a good position.”
The repeated late goals point to a fragile mentality and an inability to handle pressure when it matters most. Lisandro Martínez will not want to see the goal again. He backed away from Tottenham striker Solanke as Sandro Tonali‘s cross came in, and he could have headed the ball clear instead. Senne Lammens could also have done better.
Struggling against ten men
Solanke’s goal means Tottenham have joined Manchester City as teams to score at Old Trafford this season after having a player sent off. United have now failed to win any of their past three matches against sides with 10 men. In March, they lost 2-1 at Newcastle United after Jacob Ramsey was sent off. In November, under Ruben Amorim, Everton beat them 1-0 at Old Trafford despite having Idrissa Gueye dismissed for slapping his own teammate.
“It’s definitely something where — 10 men or not 10 men — if we’re ahead in the game, we’ve got to see games out,” Carrick said. “Whether that’s taking the ball, whether that’s controlling the game a little bit more, looking after the ball better in their half and around their box and pinning them in a little bit, or whether that’s defending moments better. Certainly, we need to improve that.”
The last time United had fewer than six points after six games, they sacked Ron Atkinson as manager. Carrick is not there yet, but the pressure is building.
Baleba offers hope
Tottenham, who started the day bottom of the table, were the brighter side early on, and boos rang out at Old Trafford after just 20 minutes. United were outplayed for large parts of the first half. The energy began to change only when Carlos Baleba, the £70 million summer signing from Brighton & Hove Albion, came on just before the hour mark. He made a positive debut, and his impact offered real hope for the weeks and months ahead, though United’s failure to close out a game they should have won overshadowed it.
United travel to Atlético Madrid in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, then head to Leeds United next weekend. After that comes another tough European assignment, at Como. Carrick insists his biggest issue is that United keep losing out on fine margins this season. He needs that to change quickly if his team is going to head in the right direction.
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