Louis Saha warns Carrick's tactics are putting his Man Utd job in danger

Louis Saha has placed the blame for Manchester United’s recent struggles squarely at Michael Carrick’s door, warning that the manager’s tactical setup is putting his job at Old Trafford in jeopardy.

United endured a miserable week, failing to beat ten-man Manchester City in the derby before surrendering a 2-0 lead to lose 3-2 against Brighton in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday. The full-time whistle at Old Trafford was met with boos from the stands, intensifying scrutiny on Carrick, who was appointed permanently in the summer after guiding the club back into the Champions League.

Speaking to Betano, Saha was emphatic that the squad itself is not the root cause of the problems. “The problem with Manchester United this season is not the players,” he said. “Benjamin Sesko missed pre-season after his injury. Some players took their time to return after the World Cup. In truth I don’t think it was a good summer transfer window for Manchester United. But Michael Carrick has to adapt.”

The former striker pointed to a lack of structure and forward momentum as the central issue. “I don’t see a team that has the animation it needs. Manchester United needs a system to play good football, with patterns of play,” Saha said. “The two defensive midfielders look too comfortable passing the ball slowly, side-to-side. It does not provide the sort of passes forward to create those one-on-one moments.”

Saha also highlighted the underuse of Marcus Rashford as a symptom of the wider tactical malaise. “They aren’t using the acceleration of Marcus Rashford to get behind teams, so they don’t have that dimension either. It’s all too slow,” he added.

United spent £155 million in the summer on midfielders Youri Tielemans, Andrey Santos and Carlos Baleba, but Saha believes the departure of Casemiro on a free transfer has proven the most damaging piece of business. The Brazilian’s absence, he argues, has left a void in the engine room that the new arrivals have yet to fill.

Drawing a comparison with Carrick’s predecessor, Saha urged the manager to take greater ownership of the team’s identity. “How can Michael Carrick avoid falling short as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer did? What he must do now is support the team to animate the system, a way of playing, a certain motion and rhythm to what they do,” he said. “Some of this comes naturally from the players you have but everything else must come from the manager.”

United will look to arrest their slide when they face Fulham on Sunday.