Ashley Cole has said Manchester United's players have lost belief in Michael Carrick and called for wholesale changes at the club after another defeat. United were beaten 2-0 by Chelsea on Saturday, making it nine games without a win in all competitions, their worst streak since 1988.
Pressure Mounts After Chelsea Defeat
Carrick's side spurned several chances in an even first half before collapsing in the second. Morgan Rogers' run and chipped finish put Chelsea ahead before Lisandro Martinez received two yellow cards and Cole Palmer converted a penalty to make it 2-0.
The result left United a point above the relegation zone and renewed speculation over Carrick's future. The 45-year-old said he expected to remain in charge for Tuesday's Champions League tie against Roma, but Cole does not see a way forward.
Cole Calls for New Manager and Personnel
Asked on beIN SPORTS who could replace Carrick, Cole said: "I really really don't know but I say that in the politest way. There are ways to change the dynamic of this team. You talk about the players not believing in the manager at the moment. Well, you need to find someone who the players will believe in."
"But the manager has to really demand more from the players. And I keep going back to it, it drives me nuts: more personality! More personality to have the ball more, to control games. Chelsea are a young team, but they have the ball, they made Manchester United come out into positions where they don't want to be! Manchester United don't seem to play with that confidence, so I think it's going to have to be a [new] manager and some personnel that come in in January that can work in a similar way to the top teams."
Carrick's Stay of Execution
Many pundits had predicted Carrick would be sacked following the 3-0 defeat by Bournemouth last Sunday. The former midfielder appeared emotional as he left the Old Trafford pitch waving to fans, but was given a stay of execution by the club's board.
"I'm a little bit shocked, because by his reaction to the fans he must have felt something boiling behind the scenes," Cole said about Carrick keeping his job for the Chelsea game. "But on the other side of that, Carrick is a young manager, he has an aura and a way about him. You saw the impact he had when he came into the job, to take them from where they were to the back end of last season, there were very good performances, you could tell the team were playing for him, they had belief."
Cole also pointed blame at the United hierarchy, accusing them of failing to recruit the right kind of players for Carrick. The failure to sign a left-back as competition for Luke Shaw is a particularly obvious issue, with Diogo Dalot filling in against Chelsea.
