Michael Carrick shouldered full responsibility on Wednesday night after Manchester United squandered a two-goal lead to crash out of the EFL Cup 3-2 against Brighton at Old Trafford, extending a miserable week that began with Sunday’s contentious defeat to Manchester City.
United raced into a commanding position inside ten minutes, with teenager Shea Lacey scoring on his first senior start before Mason Mount doubled the advantage. But Brighton stormed back, with Charalampos Kostoulas inspiring the turnaround and setting up Maxim De Cuyper’s decisive strike to complete the reversal.
Speaking afterward, Carrick described the gulf between United’s bright start and their eventual collapse as jarring. “The feeling at the start of the game and the feeling at the end couldn’t have been further apart,” he said, stressing that United cannot allow contests to slip away after building such promising positions.
The manager linked the loss to a broader pattern of recent setbacks, tracing a line from a last-gasp Everton goal through Sunday’s City defeat to Wednesday’s collapse.
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He insisted the club fully accepts responsibility and has urged his players to do the same, rejecting any suggestion that the squad had let him down.
Carrick was emphatic that accountability for United’s form rests with him. “The team’s on me,” he said, acknowledging that praise comes his way when results go well, and that criticism should follow just as readily when they don’t. Still, he expressed confidence that United’s quality gives them every chance of turning things around quickly, pointing to Sunday’s league fixture as an immediate opportunity to respond.
On the mounting external scrutiny, Carrick maintained that outside noise does not affect him personally. His sole focus, he said, is winning matches and restoring a positive atmosphere around the club, arguing that results not the surrounding debate are what ultimately matter.
Asked about the pressure building around Old Trafford, Carrick conceded the tension is impossible to ignore but insisted resilience is part of managing at a club of United’s stature, saying the experience of working there toughens people over time.
He also pushed back against the idea that United’s problems run deep, attributing Wednesday’s outcome to fine margins rather than a fundamental flaw, and noting that the team has performed well in matches this season without always getting results.
Carrick closed by expressing regret that Lacey’s milestone goal his first for the club, on his full debut had been overshadowed by the wider result, calling it “a shame that Shea’s moment” got lost amid the defeat.
The defeat means United have now been eliminated in the EFL Cup’s early rounds in back-to-back seasons, following last term’s exit to Grimsby Town. It also marks the first time since a 1976 loss to Tottenham that United have surrendered a two-goal lead at Old Trafford.
The club’s last EFL Cup triumph came in February 2023, when Erik ten Hag’s side beat Newcastle United 2-0 at Wembley.
