Rubbish. He officially covers more ground than any other United player in most games and with him, you know it is not headless chicken movement.

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If you jogged around all game, you would probably cover large amounts of ground. This is not about his work rate, its about his style. He prefers to sit back rather than close down players. I would prefer him cover less ground and close down players in his vicinity instead rather than constantly roving about. His style lets the opposition come to him. This affects the whole squad mentality. Every team we watch with envy is a team that closes down the opposition. We cannot want to play like them, like we used to play before and not do this. To have the heart of our midfield, our defensive midfielder not close down players is basically a design flaw.

Redas

FFS Carrick is following instructions on the pitch. If SAF wanted him to press in the way you say, and he wasn't, he wouldn't be starting virtually every game

Carrick doesn't get to decide his own tactics

Macca,

you cant educate pork mate

Tomatoes has been beating that anti-Carrick drum all season almost like he wants to be the one man that doesn't see what the United supporters, opposition supporters, other United players, Sir Alex and other teams players see.

Good luck with that Tomatoes

Redastomatoes

- Give it a rest mate. I don't think I've ever seen/read so much negativity from one person, who doesn't intend to WUM. Watching United must really depress you. Surprised you're still interested in the sport!

Not sure what Tomatoes is saying deserves abuse. A lot of his stuff is often insightful and looks at things with different perspective, so I wouldn't subscribe to the idea that he's wrong in this or every instance.

He isn't saying Carrick is a bad player. You'd have to beaan idiot of some extremity to believe that. But Carrick isn't an energetic midfielder like Gundogan and Bender are for Dortmund. It's why playing him alongside Fellaini is potentially dangerous if opposing teams use pace to exploit their lack of it. I think Carrick is more mobile than given credit for, in fairness. But he needs legs alongside him and not geriatrics. This has been a problem.

Moving to a team with money is not lacking in ambition by any stretch. It's showing it.

Teams like city, psg, Monaco, Chelsea etc have all won things and will all win things because try will buy top players.

The best players will win you trophies, maybe not every year, but they will win eventually. Or at least something.

fellaini is a good player...but for the amount he would cost he is no where near worth it. Not worth 20mil, and for that amount you could get a proper class midfielder

I dont think you get what I mean never mind.
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He isn't quick, but he is very mobile.

He's deceptive purely because he doesn't 'scamper' about like a Scholes used to. His reading of the game means he knows where he needs to be before most others do and doesn't often need to sprint there like say a Scott Parker

Carrick more often than not covers more than half a kilometre more than anyone else in a given game

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He' right, you don't get what he means. Covering a great distance is not the same as being mobile. You can run 100 miles in a straight line without any mobility whatsoever.

Carrick does nnot press opponents, he does not run with the ball, he doesn't dribble and he turns like a train. I.e. he is immobile. And he's slow. Nobody said he was lazy or that he stands still.

Carrick does press opponents, dribbling has fek all to do with mobility, and saying he turns like a trian is just utter nonsense you just threw in there for the hell of it

He does not run with the ball because he is such a good passer and running with the ball is not his job.

What's quicker? A 40 yard pass to feet or a 40 yard run?

Macca,

Mobile = "moving freely" or "fluid"

How on earth can you say that dribbling is irrelevant to this?

What in your view is relevant to this definition if not dribbling, turning speed, etc?

The total distance that he covers in a game relates to *stamina* - not mobility.

I'm not arguing with you just because you don't get what the word means. Go look it up instead of wasting my time.

And no, Carrick does not press the opposition - for that see the likes of Butt, Keane or Fletcher, not Carrick.

Some people get so defensive about certain players that it makes them stupid. I rate Carrick 100 times better than Fletcher but I can still see that Fletch closes down the opposition more than Carrick.

I acknowledge Carrick's strengths but I won't ignore his weaknesses just because people like you get upset about it.

With you now

Usain Bolt is mobile but Paula Radcliffe isn't

I agree, that's a fair assessment. The most mobile CMs I can think of are the likes of Juninho, Gazza and to some extent the likes of Fabregas. I'd consider Scholes (especially latter day Scholes), Keane and Alonso less mobile - but not worse.

btw I meant to say "makes them seem stupid". I wasn't caling you stupid!