Carrick blames United decision-making after Maitland-Niles stunner denies win at Everton

Benjamin Sesko’s header looked to have secured back-to-back Premier League wins for Manchester United at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Sunday, only for Ainsley Maitland-Niles to crash home a stoppage-time equaliser and leave Carrick’s side with just one win from their opening three league games.

The result is a damaging one for a United squad that spent around £150m over the summer. Bryan Mbeumo had given the visitors the lead before Tyrique George levelled, Sesko then restored United’s advantage with a header — only for Maitland-Niles to deny them at the death.

Manager Michael Carrick pointed to poor in-game decisions by his players as the root cause of the dropped points. “There was a lot of good things in the game for us. We played some really good football, were dangerous at times,” he said. “The longer the game went on there were a few more balls into the box and a few decisions we made it more difficult for us when we should’ve seen it out really. We’re disappointed we didn’t come away with a win.”

Pressed on the specific errors, Carrick was deliberately vague. “I’ll keep them to myself a little bit but we should’ve seen the game out really so we’re disappointed with that,” he added.

The United boss was keen to acknowledge the quality of Everton’s goals while maintaining that his side largely controlled the contest. “There were two great strikes to be fair. We didn’t give them real clear chances. We defended well. They had a few bits that dropped around the edge of the box,” he said. “Our second one should’ve been a winner.”

United’s attention now turns to European competition, with Azerbaijani side Sabah visiting Old Trafford on Thursday in the Champions League group stage opener. A Manchester derby against City at Old Trafford follows on Sunday, giving Carrick’s squad little time to recover confidence before one of the season’s most high-profile fixtures.