Michael Carrick started his caretaker stint with a win over Man City last weekend (Image: Getty)
Michael Carrick is leaving no stone unturned in his quest to get Manchester United firing again. The new boss has even spoken with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer – the man he beat to get the top job at Old Trafford. United are looking to back up last week’s win over rivals Manchester City when they head to familiar foes Arsenal.
Solskjaer failed to get the better of Arsenal during his previous spell as United boss, winless in five attempts. But Carrick has picked the Norwegian’s brains. “Yeah, I spoke to Ole,” Carrick said. “I’m close, we’ve been through a lot together, so he’s been fully supportive. He’s some man and I respect him an awful lot. He wished us all the best and he was happy we got the right result. Within friendships, you have conversations. I’ve got a lot of friends in places I can turn to if I need to and Ole is certainly there if ever I need him.”
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Carrick is prepared for a “big challenge” at table-topping Arsenal but says there is a quiet confidence around United after last weekend’s impressive 2-0 win over Manchester City.
United deserved to win by a greater scoreline and take the confidence from that surprise success to north London, where a clash with Premier League leaders Arsenal awaits on Sunday afternoon.
“It’s been a good week,” Carrick said. “It was a big result, a big performance and a big uplift, you know, with the feeling inside the stadium.
“It’s getting that balance between taking the encouragement and the confidence from the game itself and the performance and keeping level-headed and the feet on the ground.
“We’ve got another big game coming up and one game doesn’t make you a great team, it gives us a great foundation to build on.
“There’s a lot of confidence, a lot of good feeling within the group but measured with that, and we know what’s coming and we’ve got to be ready for it.”
Michael Carrick has spoken with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer (Image: Getty)
Arsenal entered this round of fixtures boasting a seven-point cushion at the top of the table and have an impressive recent record against United. Mikel Arteta‘s side have beaten United in their last four Premier League meetings at the Emirates Stadium and edged a 1-0 win at Old Trafford on the opening weekend of the season.
“I’m looking forward to the game,” former Red Devils midfielder Carrick said. “It’s a big challenge. They’re a very good team. It’s pretty obvious to say that. They’ve got so many strong points to their game, and to their squad.
“It’s a big challenge, they are where they are for a reason and where they are in the Champions League for a reason, so we’re fully aware of that and not taking that lightly at all.
“We feel we’re in a good place and we’re looking forward to the game, so it’s where we want to be, with that real positive energy and enthusiasm, to go there and be positive, but for sure we know it’s not going to come easy.”
Arsenal’s set-piece prowess will be a major focus for United, who have slipped behind a side that they used to compete with for titles when Carrick was a player.
“We’ve got our ideas and what needs to be done and how we need to get there,” he added. “Credit to Arsenal, they’re in a really strong place at the moment, they’ve built a squad and a group and Mikel takes a lot of credit for that. He has done a fantastic job.
“We’ve got our own ideas on what we need to do and what it’s going to take to get there, that’s what we’ll keep working towards.”