Manchester United came from 2-0 down at halftime to beat Roma 3-2 at Old Trafford, with interim boss Michael Carrick's tactical changes and a rousing team talk inspiring the turnaround. The victory ended a run of four straight damaging defeats and a 10th game without a win, easing the pressure on Carrick ahead of the international break.
Dire first half sparks criticism
United were booed off at the interval after a lifeless first-half display that left them staring at another defeat. Alan Shearer, speaking on Amazon Prime, was scathing in his assessment: "There's not been anything in this performance. I haven't seen a tackle, a cross, an effort at goal. There is nothing in this performance to be positive about."
Shearer added: "I don't know where [Carrick] starts because they have been that poor in every department. Defensively all over the place, midfield no creativity, and up front no running in behind, no efforts at goal, no holding the ball up. It's really been embarrassing for them."
Halftime rally and tactical shift
Carrick, who played under Sir Alex Ferguson and remains in regular contact with the legendary boss, delivered a message that got his players on the front foot. "I spoke at half-time about being positive," he told UEFA. "Anything can happen here, I've seen it many times over the years. You just need something to go our way and the boys were fantastic second half."
Wayne Rooney said on Amazon Prime: "I think Michael Carrick deserves a lot of credit as well, because if you were in his shoes you are thinking how can I change this around, so whatever he said to the team at half-time that got them on the front-foot and got that belief in them that they could win the game. You felt it, you could feel that they could win the game, everyone was together."
Kobbie Mainoo told Amazon Prime: "We needed a bit of a kick. We were a bit reactionary. When we lost the ball, we weren't reacting as quickly as we could have and the boss really drilled it into us that we need to be more active and take the game ourselves."
Carrick also made a key tactical switch, moving Matheus Cunha inside from the left flank. "We put him (Cunha) inside," he explained post-match. "We swapped him with Bryan at half-time to try and get him in the middle of the pitch, try and give us a little bit of different shape, and put him in the centre of the pitch, and he found himself in good positions."
Cunha, who had just two goals in 13 games before Tuesday night, won the penalty that Bruno Fernandes converted and scored twice himself, including the winner after a perfect first touch and finish at the near post. "To be part of this is a heavy responsibility," he told CBS Sports Golazo. "I always talk about this, to be this guy who has responsibility in the hard moments and the good moments, to be always there to show."
Youth delivers again
Carrick's trust in youth also paid off, with 19-year-old Shea Lacey coming off the bench in the 75th minute to replace Amad Diallo and providing the assist for Cunha's winning goal. "He's got that little glint in his eye, he plays with a bit of mischief," Carrick said. "I think he gave everybody a bit of a lift coming on the pitch."
Lacey, making just his 10th first-team appearance for the club, delivered his first senior assist. With Aston Villa visiting Old Trafford on Sunday before the international break, Carrick's decisions at half-time may have bought him more time, with Jason Wilcox and Omar Berrada watching on.
