Michael Carrick claims 'any weakness' would be found out vs Leeds Utd and five Man Utd problems emerged – opinion

Michael Carrick insisted that the Leeds United match was a real eye-opener for any signs of issues hidden within Manchester United’s turbulent campaign so far.

Speaking after Manchester United’s 1-1 draw against Leeds United, the 45-year-old Red Devils boss made a clear-cut assessment of what he witnessed at Elland Road.

“It definitely was [a step in the right direction],” he told Sky Sports, before adding: “If there’s any weakness, it gets found out today.”

United In Focus has now singled out five major ‘weaknesses’ that United showed against Leeds under Michael Carrick’s direction in Sunday’s Premier League clash.

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5. Man United’s defensive issues continue to cause a headache for Michael Carrick

If Lisandro Martinez did not have the spotlight on him before the match for his outburst earlier this week, it happened during the Leeds United clash instead. Michael Carrick was forced to take the 28-year-old Argentine centre-back off at half-time and bring Noussair Mazraoui on in his place.

Matthijs de Ligt remained on the bench as an unused substitute and Ayden Heaven was unwell and missed the trip to Elland Road. United’s problems at centre-back continue to show themselves, whether Carrick likes it or not.

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4. Man Utd cannot keep a clean sheet in the Premier League if their lives depended on it

United have played seven Premier League matches in the 2026-27 season and the Red Devils have conceded in each fixture. Carrick has been unable to have his United side secure a clean sheet this season and Senne Lammens has been left exposed by the fragile backline.

The Red Devils’ only clean sheet of the campaign so far came during their Champions League opener in September, as United thrashed Sabah 4-0 at Old Trafford. Carrick should be deeply concerned by the Red Devils’ inability to walk away with a single Premier League clean sheet this season.

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3. Man Utd’s five-match winless streak in the Premier League has killed all momentum for them

United manager Carrick must be concerned that the Red Devils cannot hold a lead under his tactics. If it were not Leeds on Sunday, then Tottenham showed it against United with only 10 men on the pitch at Old Trafford last week.

Outside of United’s Champions League victory against Sabah, the Red Devils have won only once in the Premier League this season. The concept of ‘winning’ is lost on the Red Devils since United beat Ipswich Town 5-2 in their Premier League comeback win in August.

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2. Michael Carrick should be concerned that United cannot pull off a result without Bruno Fernandes’ intervention

Bruno Fernandes’ influence was incredibly clear when he scored a hat-trick in United’s clash with Ipswich Town at Old Trafford. However, the 32-year-old Man Utd captain has been nowhere near the dazzling form that he was in last season and it showed against Leeds on Sunday.

Bruno Fernandes fell well short of expectations at Elland Road and the Red Devils could not seal all three Premier League points without an intervention from his magic. Carrick should be concerned about how Man Utd will pick up winning momentum if Fernandes is not hitting the same heights of success that he has had before for the club.

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1. Man Utd manager Michael Carrick cannot fix one problem caused by Ineos: the lack of summer signings

Leny Yoro at right-back and Bryan Mbeumo as the lone forward might have been tactical for Carrick in parts. However, the makeshift positions of different United first-team players this season show how much the Red Devils are being haunted by Ineos’ summer decisions.

Sure, Ineos did recruit well by rebuilding the midfield in the summer after landing Carlos Baleba, Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos. However, the fact that the Red Devils needed a left-back and another forward option has not been lost on United fans this season.