Carrick: Draw Feels Like a Loss, But Season Start Not All Bad

“Those were two fantastic strikes from the edge of the box and beyond, so those don't go in often. I believe we did many good things during the game to find ourselves in that position twice. Some of our attackers played really well, we looked dangerous, and we executed many of the things we were trying to do. And overall, I think we handled them quite well.

I think we defended deep when we needed to, and we defended well as a team, but perhaps we should have managed the game a little better. It hurts because we came here to win, and we put ourselves in a good position,” Carrick stated after the dramatic draw.

“We haven't started the season that badly. It's not that bad – today we were on the verge of leaving with three points; that's football. There are moments where we can do a little better, but we'll get it right. We are extremely disappointed that twice in the game we were in such a position, so close to the end. All the work we put in to get into that position at various stages, and then to leave like this – it's not a pleasant feeling. It feels like a loss.

It's a bit of a cliché to say at this stage, but we took the point and we can't overlook that, but the feeling is that we should have had much more. The mentality is there. I think there are obviously things we need to improve on as a team. Obviously, we can't ignore it – we need to concede fewer goals to have a better chance of winning games, but we will certainly address that and continue to improve,” the Manchester United manager added.

Carrick further clarified that he substituted Marcus Rashford due to a minor issue: “He felt a slight discomfort, which is why we had to make the change. We had good interactions almost all over the pitch at different moments of the game, and Marcus and Luke Shaw have been playing together for a long time and understand each other well. And it shows – they look really dangerous on that flank, and obviously, there's a lot more to come.”