Manchester United's Draw Feels Like a Defeat Amid Fitness Worries

Michael Carrick admitted Manchester United’s 2-2 draw felt like a defeat – and then added a fitness worry over Marcus Rashford to an already bruising night.

United twice led but twice let it slip late on, and Rashford, their sharpest attacking threat, was forced off after “feeling a bit of something”, according to his manager.

United lose grip late on

United started with authority and with a twist: it was Bryan Mbeumo who struck first, bending a superb curling effort into the far corner to give Carrick’s side the lead.

They carried that advantage deep into the second half. The pattern suited them: control in central areas, danger on the flanks, Rashford and Luke Shaw repeatedly prising open Everton’s right side.

Then the game turned.

With seven minutes of normal time remaining, Tyrique George stepped up and answered Mbeumo’s strike with one of his own, whipping an equally impressive finish into the top corner to level the contest.

United responded. The pressure told. Benjamin Sesko rose two minutes from time and powered in a header that looked, for all the world, like the winner. Carrick’s players celebrated as if they knew how important it was after a stuttering start to the campaign.

But the night had one final sting.

Debutant Ainsley Maitland-Niles, on in search of a moment, found one of the goals of his career. He took aim and lashed an unstoppable effort into the top corner, leaving United floored and the scoreline locked at 2-2.

When Carrick walked into his post-match press conference, the point felt like a punishment.

“Yeah, we’re disappointed, bitterly disappointed,” he said. “To be up in the position we were in, leading the game twice and so close to the end. And all of the work that went into putting us in that position at different stages, to then come away like that leaves us… yeah, it’s not a great feeling.

“Feels like a defeat, bit of a cliché, the obvious thing to say at this stage, but we have taken a point and we can’t ignore that, but it feels like we should have a lot more.”

Carrick defends mentality, questions details

United’s defending came under immediate scrutiny. Two long-range goals conceded, two leads surrendered – the obvious question followed: is this mentality or coaching?

Carrick did not flinch.

“The mentality is there,” he insisted. “I think there’s obviously things we need to get better at as a team. That’s two strikes from distance, really, two really good strikes from their point of view, so sometimes they fly in the top corner, and more often than not, they probably don’t, so there’s a little bit of that.

“But yeah, obviously we can’t ignore it. We need to concede less goals to give us a better chance of winning games, but we’ll certainly look at that and keep improving.”

He pointed to the fine margins around Maitland-Niles’ late equaliser.

“I think that one strike from the edge, that goes in top the corner and changes the whole feeling, that few minutes,” he said. “There’s, obviously, when you look back, there’ll be loads of little things that you can do a little bit differently, of course, but he’s put it in the top corner from well outside the box, so sometimes it’s the one of those things.”

Rashford scare after electric display

Rashford had been a constant menace, driving at defenders, linking with Shaw and stretching Everton’s back line. His substitution for Patrick Dorgu raised eyebrows in the away end and in the press box.

Carrick’s explanation will worry United supporters.

“Yeah, he was feeling a bit of something,” the manager said when asked why Rashford came off.

That was as far as he went on the nature of the problem, but he was far more expansive on the forward’s form.

“Yeah, he’s done very well. As I said during the week, he’s done ever so well since he came back. I thought he looked really sharp again today and dangerous.

“That final little moment didn’t quite drop for him, but nevertheless, I thought he created really good opportunities, and there was a big threat throughout the game.”

Carrick also highlighted the understanding down the left.

“I think you’re trying to build those partnerships and combinations throughout the team, really, and they’ve played together for quite some time now and have an understanding. And it’s obviously up to us to build the understandings and combinations all the time.

“I thought we had that quite a lot through the middle of the pitch today at certain times, I thought we played some really good football through the middle of the pitch and obviously Bryan got his goal on the right, Marcus and Luke were particularly dangerous down that side.”

“We’ll be fine”

For all the frustration, Carrick refused to paint the start of the season as a crisis.

On the wider picture, he said: “We haven’t started the season that bad, to be honest.

“Yeah, yeah, but it’s not that bad, you know? We were a lot closer to coming away with three points today. That’s football; there are moments that we can deal with a bit better, but we’ll be fine.”

United do not have long to stew on the collapse. They are back at Old Trafford on Thursday, opening their Champions League campaign against Sabah, needing not just a win but a statement – and hoping their most dangerous forward is fit enough to deliver it.