Some people think Michael Carrick could be the answer to Manchester United's defensive problems. Those people should think again say Squawka.
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Manchester United's season has got off to a rocky start, no one could deny that.
Having failed to win in their first three games everything seemed to click against Queen's Park Rangers, with the Red Devils running riot against below-par opposition, banging in four goals and keeping a clean sheet.
Angel Di Maria spearheaded the victory and was suddenly the poster boy of the Red Devils Renaissance.
But the joy was short-lived, with United throwing away a 3-1 lead at the King Power stadium to lose 5-3, deciding Leicester City needed the points more than them.
Defensive errors were heavy to blame for the capitulation. Their star-studded attack got the off to a flying start and it looked as though the game could turn into a massacre, with Di Maria pulling the strings and orchestrating play. But then the strings snapped.
United became disjointed and fell apart in a second-half that saw them concede four goals in 21 minutes and lose Tyler Blackett to a red card.
An interesting 'solution' to their defensive woes has been banded about , with Louis van Gaal reportedly preparing to give it a go playing Michael Carrick in central defence.
His problems with injury and his age will make it unlikely for him to feature in every Premier League game following his return, as he takes longer to recover and has never played in all 38-games in a season for United - although in the past they have been challenging in other competitions.
Of course United have injury problems beyond Carrick, with Evans ruled out for up to a month, Jones not yet match-fit and Blackett now suspended for his lunge at Vardy. But Van Gaal cannot plug the holes in his side with the midfielder, he needs to look to his substitutes and younger players to step up if needs be. There are opportunities to be had at United, given the state of turmoil at the club, so no doubt one plucky youngster will have the ability to take their chance.
Luke Shaw's return from injury will mean Marcos Rojo can move more centrally, or Daley Blindcan move to left-back, where he has played for Ajax and the Netherlands in the past. There is no need to uproot a player who has spent his entire career in central midfield, when there are players available to come into the side.
One of United's real problems against Leicester was tackling. They only managed to win one tackle during the period in which the Foxes ran riot and scored four goals to flip the tie on its head. Tyler Blackett was sent off for a clumsy attempt at a tackle on Vardy and Rafael was also outsmarted by the forward and gave away the first spot-kick.
Carrick failed to win 50 tackles last season, experiencing success just 46% of the time, so he is not the solution to this problem. United's inexperienced defenders will take time to master their timings and anticipation, kicking them out for a 33-year-old midfielder who wins less-than-half his tackles is clearly not the solution.
Five defensive actions a game is what Carrick averaged for United last season, some way off the top spot held by Nemanja Vidic (13). Overall, eight players contributed more defensively - on average - for United last term, even Marouane Fellaini (six) was involved more than the former England midfielder.
Also, his lack of pace could see him come unstuck easily. Jamie Vardy tormented much younger men at the King Power on Sunday, with his runs into space and high work rate. It's unlikely that Carrick would be able to keep pace with an energetic forward like that, or Sergio Aguero, Daniel Sturridge, Alexis Sanchez and the rest.
The former Tottenham man was successful in 55% of his duels, which is not up to the standard of United's defenders with Ferdinand (61%), Chris Smalling (62%) and Jonny Evans (74%) all experiencing far more success than Carrick. Vidic only narrowly beat him with (58%).
United need stability. They have always built on a strong centre-back duo and they lost both halves of that over the summer- with Rio Ferdinand joining Queen's Park Rangers and Vidic opting to move to Italy (along with Patrice Evra). Three of United's most reliable defenders in recent years left over the summer, taking 1134 appearances-worth of experience with them.
Carrick cannot offer Van Gaal the kind of stability the side needs. He will retire within the next few years, or leave the club for one of the footballing retirement homes to the east or west of Europe, meaning United will again be without a regular centre-back.
The Dutchman's best bet is to persevere with those he has got - seeing as he didn't see the need to replace them a month ago - or buy well in January. Carrick has been a great player for the Red Devils over the years, but this is too big an ask for the veteran midfielder to occupy a centre-back role under all that pressure.
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