Michael Carrick enjoyed the perfect start to his tenure as Manchester United’s interim head coach on Saturday, as second-half goals from Bryan Mbeumo and Patrick Dorgu secured a dominant 2-0 victory over Manchester City at Old Trafford.
United dominated large spells of the contest and were unfortunate not to be ahead earlier, having three goals ruled out for offside and being repeatedly denied by City’s goalkeeper.
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The breakthrough finally arrived in the final 25 minutes, with Mbeumo marking his return from the Africa Cup of Nations by opening the scoring before Dorgu wrapped up the win.
Having only been appointed head coach until the end of the season this week, following the departure of Ruben Amorim, Carrick immediately made his mark, with a noticeable shift in both United’s approach and the atmosphere inside Old Trafford.
The victory lifts Man United into the top four and will also be welcomed in north London, as Arsenal move closer to a first league title in 22 years. Mikel Arteta’s side could open a nine-point lead at the summit when they face Nottingham Forest later on Saturday.
Carrick’s bold team selection paid off, with in-form forwards Benjamin Sesko and Matheus Cunha initially left out to accommodate the returns of Mbeumo and Amad Diallo from AFCON duty. Harry Maguire also made his first start in two months and went close inside two minutes, crashing a header from Bruno Fernandes’ corner against the crossbar.
City, struggling with injuries in defence, fielded an inexperienced central pairing, and their makeshift back line was under pressure throughout. United’s attacking intent repeatedly exposed City’s vulnerabilities, with Diallo and Fernandes both having goals ruled out for offside before the interval.
