Michael Carrick celebrates Manchester United’s dramatic late win against Fulham
With seven minutes to go at Old Trafford, it looked like being a walk in the park for Manchester United. They hadn’t had it all their own way against an impressive Fulham side, but they had defended well, attacked with some verve and looked set for a run-of-the-mill 2-0 win.
A little under 20 minutes later, the roar that greeted the final whistle was one of ecstasy mixed with relief. United did their best to throw away a routine win, but having rescued themselves with Benjamin Sesko’s 94th-minute winner, it arguably made for a more enjoyable afternoon.
Certainly, the United fans leaving the ground will remember the day more than they would have done had the contest finished 2-0, or even 2-1, after Raul Jimenez scored an 85th-minute penalty that set the mayhem in motion.
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That was a point made by Michael Carrick after the match, when his smile lit up his post-match press conference. The 44-year-old has been calm and unflustered in his media dealings, as he has been on the sidelines so far, but for the first time there was a sense of emotion on show.
“It’s the best feeling, I have to say. Some of the best moments here that I’ve been lucky enough to be a part of are when you get a moment of elation and excitement like that,” he said of Sesko’s dramatic winner, which came after Fulham had equalised in the first minute of injury time.
“There’s no better place, in front of the Stretford End, and it ends up meaning a bit more. I think people leave here with more than just, you know, United win today, and it kind of puts layers on top of that and the connection and the feeling, the emotion, it’s why we all love it so much and especially the supporters, so it goes a long way.
“The excitement that’s part of this club, it’s not always the easiest way, but certainly when they come along, it’s pretty special.”
Carrick was part of plenty of wins that fit this narrative during his 464 games for the club, but it’s very different doing it as a player than as a manager.
When Sesko’s goal hit the back of the net, the substitutes tore down the touchline to join in with the celebrations, while Senne Lammens raced from his goal into the Fulham half before retreating.
But Carrick remained calm and after a brief chat with assistant Steve Holland, he tried to call back Leny Yoro from the celebrations to come on. He explained the differences between doing it as a player and a manager afterwards, revealing he always felt his team would get a chance to win the game.
“Yeah, slightly different,” he said. “I think when you’re in the thick of it as a player, you’re right in the moment and you obviously don’t always see the bigger picture. You’re a little bit different in terms of the attachment to the game. I was pretty calm all the way through.
“We were disappointed obviously with the second goal, but I was aware there was still eight minutes to go at that point when they scored. If anything, I was thinking there’s a long time to go and we still had the players on the pitch at that point that could really make the difference for us. I was still really positive that I thought we’d find a moment.
“Listen, it’s hard to hold your emotions together when the goal goes in like that, so I think we all celebrated when that went in. But, yeah, I did feel we’d have a moment. We tend to, in them type of games, you always have a moment, it’s just whether you can take it, and Ben certainly did that from Bruno’s great work down the right.”
It has been noticeable in Carrick’s three-game reign so far that he is determined to project calm to his players. He rarely shows emotion on the sidelines, but admits it is about getting the balance right of when to let some emotion out.
“Certainly, that composure and that calmness for the players to be able to think clearly,” said Carrick. “It’s getting the balance, and I think we’ve got the balance pretty well over the last three games of playing with that bit of fire and a bit of hunger, but making good decisions as well.
“I’m not sure we all made good decisions when that goal went in in terms of how we celebrated, but that’s what you strive for, that’s why we all love the game for moments like that, so when they do come, you’re going to make the most of them.”
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