New Delhi, Sep 4 (IANS) Manchester United manager Michael Carrick believes his side have emerged as a stronger squad from the summer transfer window, with players like Andrey Santos, Youri Tielemans, and Carlos Baleba strengthening the team with their experience.
Carrick said that despite spending less in the transfer window, the club had strengthened in different areas and insisted United must continue to improve as the season progresses.
“I think we’ve brought some really good players into the football club and improved the squad in different ways, individually but collectively,” Carrick said during a charity golf day for his foundation. I think we’ve grown. You go into the window, and when you come out of it, you want to be stronger than you were at the start. I’m convinced we are that,” Carrick told Sky Sports.
According to the newly appointed manager, United had some challenges during the transfer window but made the most of it and remained focused on building a competitive team.
“Transfer windows are never straightforward, and this window in particular has been challenging for different reasons. There’s a lot of money being spent in and around the league itself, and I think we’ve made the most of the situation that we’ve found ourselves in,” he said.
“That’s the world we live in. Teams at certain points are going to spend a lot of money. Sometimes it’s going to be more than what we spend; sometimes maybe not. We’ve got to make the most of what we can and understand where we’re at. I think we’re a very good team; we want to keep getting better,” he added.
Manchester United had a poor start to the season as they lost to newly promoted Hull City in their opener; however, the team made a comeback in the next match and secured a dominant 5-2 victory against Ipswich Town.
Carrick praised the character shown by his players after suffering setbacks, saying their response has given him confidence about what the group can achieve.
“Since I came back really and we got the group together, we’ve lost a couple of games, we’ve had some setbacks, but the way the boys have dealt with it gives us a lot of courage moving forward,” he said.
Reflecting on United’s response in their recent game against Ipswich, Carrick said the mentality displayed by the players was more important than the final scoreline.
“At some point you’re going to have things that go against you. Whether that’s a game or a moment in games, and I’ve talked about it this week. I think the response that we showed and the confidence the boys had, that’s when you find out quite a bit about what you are as a group,” he said.
“I thought we did a lot of good things in the first half. We had a few minutes when it didn’t go well for us; we took that into the second half and played some really good football. A lot of people talk about the goals and the results in the end, but I think the mentality is what pleased us the most. It gives us a lot of encouragement moving forward,” he added.
Despite the victory, Man United sits 10th in the Premier League Standings with 3 points in two matches. They will next face Everton on Sunday.
–IANS
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