Manchester United Seek Redemption Against Fulham
Carrick’s Reds head south in search of a reset. Two straight defeats at Old Trafford have darkened the mood, and the manner of one of them still stings.
A late Erling Haaland winner for Manchester City, which many inside the ground felt should never have stood, lit the fuse. The Carabao Cup exit to Brighton & Hove Albion on Wednesday only deepened the frustration. Now comes a trip to the capital and a meeting with an improving Fulham side that suddenly looks a far trickier assignment than the table suggests.
Chasing a better ending
The start to the season has been flat. Michael Carrick knows it. His players know it. This visit to Craven Cottage is a chance to sign off this early run of fixtures with something more convincing, something that hints at a team ready to climb rather than cling on.
They do at least travel with a recent memory of late drama against the Cottagers. Back in early February at Old Trafford, a wild contest seemed to have slipped away. Casemiro and Matheus Cunha had built what looked like a safe two-goal cushion, only for Raul Jimenez and Kevin to drag Fulham level and silence the home crowd. Then, deep into stoppage time, Benjamin Šeško exploded into the box and snatched a winner that tore the noise levels back up. Three points, rescued in the most breathless fashion.
Craven Cottage has been less kind. The last league visit there, the first away game of the 2025/26 campaign, never quite settled into a rhythm. Leny Yoro appeared to have claimed the opener, only for the record to show it as a Rodrigo Muniz own goal. Emile Smith Rowe struck back for Marco Silva’s side, and the visitors had to make do with a point.
New man in the Fulham dugout
The landscape in west London has shifted since then. Alvaro Arbeloa now stands in the home technical area, handed the Fulham job after his spell in charge at Real Madrid.
His Premier League baptism was harsh: three league games, three defeats. Then came Anfield. On his return to Liverpool, the former full-back dug in, organised, and walked away with a 0-0 draw that turned a few heads. It felt like a small but important marker that his Fulham are hardening up.
The signs of progress are not limited to the league. The Cottagers have also pushed into the fourth round of the Carabao Cup, dispatching fellow London sides AFC Wimbledon and West Ham United along the way. Quietly, the mood around the Cottage has lifted.
Team news: key defenders back in the frame
Carrick’s team sheet will tell its own story. At the back, there is at last some light. Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martinez are both in contention to return at the heart of the defence, a timely boost for a side that has looked vulnerable under pressure. Luke Shaw, who has missed the last three matches, is also hoping to be fit enough to feature after travelling with the squad.
Higher up the pitch, there were at least individual sparks in the midweek defeat. Shea Lacey marked his first senior start with a goal against Brighton, a sharp finish that underlined why the club rates him so highly. Mason Mount, making his first start of the season, also found the net and reminded everyone of his value between the lines.
The longer-term absentees have shaped the early weeks. Matthijs de Ligt, Carlos Baleba, Manuel Ugarte and Amad have all been missing since the campaign began. Carrick, though, has offered a more optimistic bulletin on de Ligt and Baleba. Both have been included in the travelling group, raising the prospect of a debut for one of the summer’s headline arrivals if the moment feels right.
One notable omission stands out. Benjamin Šeško, the match-winner in that chaotic Old Trafford meeting with Fulham, has not made the trip to London. For a side searching for goals and confidence, his absence changes the picture.
So the stage is set: a manager under pressure, a reshaped defence, a rising Fulham under a new coach, and a ground that rarely grants anything for free. This isn’t just another away day. It’s a test of where Carrick’s project really stands.
