United draw with Leeds again as doubts over Carrick start to grow

A 1-1 draw shouldn't set off every alarm. But at this autumn's Manchester United, any lukewarm result gets read as one more sign that something is broken. And the question starting to hang over Old Trafford is no longer whether Michael Carrick will survive, but for how much longer.

The precedent weighs heavily. Barely a season ago, Ruben Amorim was sacked just 24 hours after a 1-1 draw at Elland Road against Leeds, an exit that was hastened by an explosive press conference in which he criticized the club's director of football, Jason Wilcox. Carrick, who produced the same scoreline against the same opponent this Sunday, is unlikely to meet the same immediate fate. But the pattern is starting to feel uncomfortably familiar.

The numbers don't help calm the doubts. United have managed just one Premier League win so far this season and haven't won in any competition since beating FK Sabah 4-0 in the Champions League on September 10. In other words: a 45-year-old manager beginning to walk the same path trodden by his immediate predecessors, Amorim and Erik ten Hag, before they packed their bags.

A script we already know

The playbook is almost identical every time: a sluggish start, no sign of improvement, a period of drift settling in around mid-table while the board keeps insisting it backs the manager and, at the same time, crosses its fingers hoping results will sort themselves out. They never do. Weeks pass, months pass, the players keep performing at half-speed, results never take off, and eventually the club fires the manager to start the same psychodrama all over again.

Carrick still has support within the boardroom, though that backing has an expiration date if results stay this poor. It's already mid-October, the season is two months old, and United have won just twice: against newly promoted Ipswich and the champions of Azerbaijan. They were also knocked out of the Carabao Cup in the first round for the second year running. After seven matchdays, they sit on seven points and are already 14 points behind league leaders Manchester City. It's the club's worst start to a season since 1986, so there isn't much to hold onto.

And it's not as if options are lacking should the board decide to pull the trigger: Eddie Howe, Antonio Conte and Kieran McKenna, all managers with Premier League pedigree, are currently available. Carrick signed a two-year contract in May as a reward for getting the team back into the Champions League after taking over on an interim basis in January, replacing Amorim. History says United never rush managerial changes. But the season is slipping away, and if nothing changes soon, it could go straight down the drain.

Sturdier, but toothless

At Elland Road, Carrick tried to change course with a back three and a more robust midfield, deploying Andrey Santos and Carlos Baleba in front of the defensive line with Bruno Fernandes and Youri Tielemans pushed slightly higher. The team did become more compact, but at the cost of an attack that was already lacking bite. Even after Bryan Mbeumo put United ahead in the 35th minute, the team never looked capable of putting the game away.

The hosts equalized just six minutes after the break: Dominic Calvert-Lewin finished from close range after a corner was poorly cleared, and that goal drained any tension from a match that was already short on attacking quality. As the game faded toward the 1-1 that left nobody satisfied, Carrick watched from the touchline showing no emotion, no passion, no clear instructions, exactly when his players needed some leadership.

Given the club's situation, Carrick projects a calm that is starting to look excessive, both on the pitch and in front of the microphones. In a way, he embodies the "sleepwalking" mode through which United are moving this season.

We're not accepting that everything is fine, but sometimes, when you're going through difficulties, you have to find a way through. I understand the situation doesn't look good, but I have no doubt we can go on a good run. There are a lot of things that give me confidence, I think we can still have a great season.Michael Carrick

The alarm bells keep ringing in the background, but Carrick's message remains one of staying calm. Something, however, has to change. United travel to Como on Wednesday for the Champions League and host Bournemouth the following Sunday at Old Trafford. The schedule offers no relief, and the team needs to start winning.

The last time United made such a poor start to a season, they fired their manager in early November, with the team barely above the relegation zone and 13 points from 13 games. The man who arrived then was named Alex Ferguson. Forty years later, it seems Old Trafford is once again waiting for someone to save it.