Why players downing tools is still on Michael Carrick

Manchester United are in a rut. A rut that many believe can only be fixed by sacking the manager. However, what remains up for debate is whether doing so will actually solve the club’s problems.

Man United fans will hate this, but yes, sacking the manager will solve one problem, and it may be enough to get the season back on track.

Some fans have pointed out that the players are downing tools and simply don’t want to play for the manager. That may be true, but it does not, in any way, absolve the English head coach of responsibility. The reason may surprise you.

Should the manager be blamed when his players lose faith in him?

Short answer? Yes.

Let’s keep in mind that whenever a player falls out of favour with a manager, he is usually shipped out. For enough players to collectively lose faith in a manager, something must have gone horribly wrong.

This is not to say that some players aren’t downing tools for senseless reasons or are simply being spoiled. However, when a large enough group of players lose interest in playing for a manager, it suggests that the manager has failed in one of his most important responsibilities.

Keeping the players onside is half the manager’s job

Some people don’t seem to understand that a manager’s job doesn’t start and end with tactics. Keeping the players on your side accounts for a significant part of the job. This is why so much fuss is made about good man-management.

In Carrick’s case, you could argue that he was a good man-manager. His 2025/26 results certainly suggest as much. However, what Carrick lacked was the ability to take the team from where it was to the next level.

And the players sensed that.

When people say the disaster at Manchester United is entirely down to player power, they forget that no group of players has enough influence to undermine a manager who is delivering results.

Think about it. Why would players start losing interest in a manager who is getting the job done?

More importantly, why would a club’s board even listen to a player who wants to get a manager sacked if that manager is performing well?

For players to have power over a manager, the manager has to give them ammunition. Carrick did.

It’s cheaper – and more realistic – to change the manager

This is the other side of the coin. We could grant you the point that none of this is the manager’s fault, and it would still be the manager who should go.

The Red Devils made several signings in the last transfer window, including €76m for Carlos Baleba, €41m for Youri Tielemans and €56m for Andrey Santos. This doesn’t include the money spent on other players in previous windows.

When the relationship between a manager and his players becomes untenable, it makes more business sense to change the manager. You can replace a manager relatively easily, but you can’t simply buy an entirely new squad.

“But it’s not ALL the players you’d need to replace.”

Well, you’re correct. But if you need to replace enough of them, it’s functionally the same thing.

Carlo Ancelotti was constantly memed for his excellent man-management

In the weeks leading up to Carlo Ancelotti’s latest UEFA Champions League triumph, people joked that his tactics were simply “friendship”. Some even suggested he had no tactics at all and focused entirely on making the players happy with themselves and one another.

Though they were jokes, they taught us something. If friendship and excellent man-management were enough to win as many trophies as Ancelotti has, then perhaps man-management is even more important than we thought.

You can also look at it this way: if Carrick got full credit for last season’s success, then he should take his fair share of the blame for this season’s failures.