Jose Mourinho Supports Michael Carrick Amid Pressure at Old Trafford

Jose Mourinho has kept his verdict on Michael Carrick short, sharp and strikingly positive.

“He's doing well Michael, doing well,” the former Manchester United manager said when asked about his one-time assistant’s work in the Old Trafford dugout. Then came the follow-up, just as succinct: “I'm happy with that.”

No grand speech. No tactical lecture. Just a clear nod of approval from a man who knows exactly how unforgiving the United job can be.

Carrick’s uneasy start

Carrick earned the role on a permanent basis after a composed interim spell, guiding United to a third-place finish and a return to the Champions League. It felt, for a moment, like a seamless passing of the baton: the elegant midfielder turned modern coach, restoring order and direction.

The new season has cut through that optimism.

An opening-day defeat to newly-promoted Hull City jolted the mood. A late, painful draw with Everton deepened the frustration. Then came Sunday: a 1-0 loss to 10-man Manchester City, the kind of result that lingers in the stands and on the training ground.

United have scored freely at times. They hit Ipswich Town for five in a 5-2 win and brushed aside Sabah FK in the Champions League. The scorelines looked healthy; the performances did not always follow. The doubts in the fanbase have not shifted. If anything, they have hardened.

Carrick has tried to keep the focus forward, insisting that United are not dwelling on early setbacks and are instead locked in on the fixtures ahead. That resolve is about to be tested.

Under the microscope

The calendar offers no hiding place. A cup tie against Brighton & Hove Albion looms, followed by a league meeting with Fulham at the weekend. Two games, both winnable on paper, both loaded with jeopardy in reality.

If those matches go wrong, the noise around Carrick will rise sharply. A club of United’s size rarely tolerates prolonged uncertainty. Performances that “leave a lot to be desired” soon turn into questions about direction, authority, and whether the manager truly fits the job.

That is the backdrop against which Mourinho’s words land. Not as empty politeness, but as a small, pointed show of faith.

Mourinho’s shadow and support

Mourinho knows the terrain better than most. Between May 2016 and December 2018, he took charge of 144 matches as United boss. He did what he was hired to do: win trophies.

A Community Shield. A Europa League title. A League Cup. Silverware that arrived in a period when the club was still searching for a post-Ferguson identity.

Carrick was part of that inner circle, learning close up from a manager who thrives on pressure and confrontation. When Mourinho departed and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer stepped in, Carrick stayed. Different style, different mood, same constant presence on the staff.

Now he is the one in the line of fire.

From a distance, as Real Madrid coach, Mourinho could easily have dodged the question or offered a diplomatic shrug. Instead, he chose to back his former lieutenant, even if only with a couple of clipped sentences.

For Carrick, those words do not change the table, the results, or the mood at Old Trafford. The next judgment will not come from Madrid. It will come from Brighton, from Fulham, and from the Stretford End, watching to see whether a former midfield metronome can steady a listing season before it starts to spiral.