Farke defends Carrick from early criticism and rejects favourites tag ahead of Yorkshire derby

Daniel Farke used his pre-match press conference to mount a public defence of Manchester United head coach Michael Carrick, urging patience with one of the Premier League’s few young British managers ahead of Sunday’s meeting between Leeds United and Manchester United.

Carrick has faced growing scrutiny after United collected just six points from their opening six league matches — the club’s worst start to a top-flight season in 40 years — leaving them 13th in the table. Leeds, by contrast, have lost only once and sit three points ahead of their rivals.

Farke, who holds a perfect league record against Carrick with four wins over Middlesbrough and one at Old Trafford in April, was nonetheless keen to contextualise his colleague’s broader achievements. Carrick was handed the permanent United role after steadying the club last season and securing Champions League qualification.

“When I think about Michael, we don’t have too many young British coaches and managers in the Premier League,” Farke said. “Right now we have someone, a really young, promising manager who’s done an excellent job at Middlesbrough and he came in last season in a situation and helped a lot to stabilise the club, helped a lot to steady the ship, and has done an amazing job.”

Farke was critical of the speed at which pressure has mounted on Carrick after only six games. “After six game days, when they didn’t have a horrendous start but, of course, by their perception they want to fight for the title, the criticism starts already. I don’t like it,” he said. “If we have young, promising managers let’s also look a bit after them, especially ones that have a British passport.”

The German coach also highlighted Carrick’s loyalty to United as a player and his willingness to step into a difficult situation last season. “Keep in mind what he has done for the club for many years as a player, what he has done last season in a very difficult situation where many persons would also be a bit hesitant to step in and to help. He has done a top-class job.”

Despite Leeds’ stronger form, Farke was quick to dismiss any suggestion that his side should enter Sunday’s fixture as favourites. “We know that we’re capable to do something extraordinary, but let’s do it and then we can speak about it,” he said, stressing that he preferred actions over pre-match declarations.

Carrick’s only victory over Farke came in the Carabao Cup first round in 2024/25, making the head-to-head record a further subplot to an already charged fixture.