Carrick moved by Old Trafford support after United's 3-0 collapse against Bournemouth

Michael Carrick received a rare moment of warmth at Old Trafford on Sunday, with United supporters cheering the caretaker manager off the pitch even as his players were booed following a 3-0 home defeat to Bournemouth — a result that could cost him his job.

The loss was met with widespread frustration in the stands. Derogatory chants were directed at the Glazers, Sir Jim Ratcliffe and director of football Jason Wilcox throughout the match, while the players were jeered at full-time. Carrick was the only figure to emerge with any goodwill from the crowd.

Asked whether he had addressed the booing with his squad in the dressing room, Carrick said: “I’ve not spoken to everyone individually. The ones I have spoken to, it’s affecting them a lot, as you can see really with the performance, how much it’s not gone our way, and we’ve not made it go our way.”

He added: “There’s only so much really, because just because of the way the game ended, the atmosphere in the stadium, the dynamics, and trying to almost spend some time trying to digest that and see what that means.”

On the supporters’ reception towards him personally, Carrick said the gesture carried real weight given the circumstances. “Probably didn’t really expect that off the supporters, if I’m honest, but I’ve always felt the support and always felt that connection with them anyway,” he said. “For them to kind of show that back meant an awful lot. But it’s still to be in such a difficult situation and go through a day like we have done — in a spell like we have done — is certainly difficult to take. So there’s real mixed emotions in there for sure.”

The contrast with former United manager Jose Mourinho’s handling of crowd hostility is a sharp one. Speaking ahead of a Madrid derby in 2012 during his first spell as Real Madrid head coach, Mourinho took a characteristically theatrical approach, publicly inviting supporters to direct their boos at him rather than his players — even naming a specific time for them to do so.

“I’ll head out into the Bernabeu by myself at 9.20 pm,” Mourinho said at the time. “If they want to whistle at me, I’ll be there. I’ll take it calmly and humbly. All I want is for them to try to support and help the team.”

Where Mourinho sought to absorb the pressure through provocation and theatre, Carrick’s response was quieter and more personal — a reflection of two very different managerial personalities shaped by the same club.