Michael Carrick is refusing to rule out the possibility of a late Manchester United surge which could sweep his rejuvenated team to the Premier League title.
Sunday’s 2-1 win over Crystal Palace was United’s sixth win in seven since Carrick took over as interim boss, a remarkable turnaround in form lifting them to third in the table.
Their return of 19 points from a possible 21 is five more than leaders Arsenal have taken over the same period, and three more than second-placed Manchester City, with United having beaten both in Carrick’s first two games in charge.
With 10 games left to play they sit 13 points behind the Gunners with a game in hand, and eight points behind City going into Wednesday’s match away at Newcastle.
No side has come from this far back to take the title in Premier League history – in 1997-98 Arsenal were 12 points behind United at the start of March before winning the title by one point, but they had three games in hand.
However Carrick’s old boss Sir Alex Ferguson would surely not have conceded defeat in a similar position, and nor will Carrick, even if he had a wry smile when asked the question.
‘You can’t rule anything out in football, but we’ve got to be realistic and know where it’s at,’ he said. ‘I think we’ve just got to try and keep winning games and see.
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‘Above us now there’s two fantastic teams. There’s some really good teams in and around us. We’ve had a good run, we’re certainly not getting carried away in. You’ve got to be patient but you’ve got to be living in the moment a little bit, certainly, take the confidence.
‘Wherever that’s going to take us, we’ll just have to see. But we’ll keep pushing anyway…
‘Definitely a glass is half full on what you can achieve more than the negative side, that’s for sure. Of course, I’m being realistic about it. We have to win a lot of football matches for that to happen, so we’ll do what we’ve been doing and go one at a time.’
Should Michael Carrick be Man Utd's next manager?
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Yes - he's earned the right
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No - it would be a big mistake
Man Utd's games under Michael Carrick
Jan 17 – Man Utd 2-0 Man City
Jan 25 – Arsenal 2-3 Man Utd
Feb 1 – Man Utd 3-2 Fulham
Feb 7 – Man Utd 2-0 Tottenham
Feb 10 – West Ham 1-1 Man Utd
Feb 23 – Everton 0-1 Man Utd
Mar 1 – Man Utd 2-1 Crystal Palace
Each victory strengthens Carrick’s own case to get the United job on a permanent basis come the summer.
The former United skipper, 44, signed a deal until the end of the season when he was named as Amorim’s replacement in January with United wanting to give themselves time to consider a long-term appointment, but the remarkable turnaround he has overseen has made him the bookmakers’ favourite.
‘There’s no getting away from the situation of course,’ Carrick said.
‘There’s not really an awful lot I can say about it to be honest. I love being here. I love doing what I’m doing.
‘I’ve said it from the start, I’m not making any decisions for short-term or quick fixes. I think it’s the responsibility, however long I’m here, to make decisions that are the best for the football club in the long term.
‘Of course winning games helps and the boys are doing great with that. We’ll just have to see where it ends up. There’s not really much I can give you on top of that at the moment, really.’
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