Mainoo rallies United teammates behind Carrick as nine-match winless run deepens

Kobbie Mainoo has urged his Manchester United teammates to stand behind manager Michael Carrick as the club prepares to host Roma at Old Trafford on Tuesday in the Champions League, with United having failed to win in nine consecutive games across all competitions — their worst such streak since 1988.

The run reached a new low on Saturday when United were beaten 2-0 at Chelsea, leaving them above the Premier League relegation zone only on goal difference. Carrick, who impressed during a short-term stint in charge last season before being handed the permanent job, now faces mounting scrutiny over his position.

Mainoo’s own career has been revitalised under Carrick after a difficult spell under predecessor Ruben Amorim, and the England midfielder was candid about the debt he feels to his manager.

“I’m very grateful to the boss for putting the trust in me as soon as he came in, and putting that belief in me,” Mainoo said. “Giving me all the advice that he has, knowing he’s a player who’s been at this club and knows the history of this club and knows what it takes to win, I take those words to heart and I try and apply them every day in training and in games.”

Asked whether the squad appreciates Carrick’s continued public backing of his players, Mainoo was direct: “Yeah, of course, and I feel like our way to repay that is to also be behind the manager on the pitch and off it, and fight for us and fight for us as a team. In these tough times you can’t expect the fans 100,000 per cent of the time to be happy and cheering when we’re not putting out results. We owe it to them to put the results out there for them to cheer again.”

Tuesday’s fixture is United’s fourth Champions League outing of the campaign, having lost two of their previous three group-stage games. A Premier League home match against Aston Villa follows before the November international break, making the coming week pivotal for Carrick’s tenure.

“Of course it’s been a tough season,” Mainoo acknowledged. “We’ve not had the results we’ve wanted, but we need to look forward now. There’s big, big games ahead and I feel like we’re one win away from changing that.”