Which Manchester United Players Can Plug the Michael Carrick Gap?

After a confidence-boosting run of results, culminating in the 1-0 win over Arsenal, Manchester United face another stern test in South Wales on Sunday afternoon. Not only will the Cardiff City Stadium host an incredible atmosphere for the visit of the champions, but United are now suffering injuries in a key area of the team.

Will the replacements be up to the job?

Michael Carrick’s stock has risen impressively in the last couple of seasons. Views on Carrick, which were aired by fans on message boards and radio phone-ins, have changed beyond all recognition recently, thanks to a new appreciation of his value to the side.

A question that was aired a couple of years ago on the official Manchester United forum was “What does Michael Carrick do?,” which was followed by a lengthy discussion between supporters about his merits—or perceived lack thereof.

It is now more widely accepted that Carrick provides good protection for the back four, reads the game well and has one of the very best pass completion rates in the EPL, reaching an average of almost 90 percent.

In a league where the speed of the game can often mean that keeping possession is difficult, his strong ball retention rates are a much-desired commodity. Small wonder, then, that successive Manchester United managers have relied on him so much.

A mainstay of Sir Alex Ferguson’s later sides, David Moyes has also found he can rely on the calming influence of the “king of control,” as the Telegraph called him after his performance for England against Poland recently.

Unfortunately for United, the Daily Mail reports that the 32-year-old’s current rehabilitation from an Achilles operation could take up to five weeks. Although shorter than had been anticipated, it is still a long time to be without a first-team regular.

That, then, leaves us to update the question from earlier and ask, “What will Manchester United do without Michael Carrick?”

The deployment of Phil Jones as a tough-tackling defensive midfielder may have been one option that David Moyes would have considered to replace Carrick directly. The manager is obviously a fan of what Jones can bring to the side. Only Carrick, Patrice Evra and David De Gea have featured more times in the starting eleven this season.

Although his future may eventually lie in central defence, Jones’ attributes were vitally important in United’s victory over Arsenal. He has, however, returned from England duty with an injury of his own to nurse and will reportedly miss at least the next two matches, according to the Mail.

Missing two almost ever-present players leaves David Moyes with the task of deciding who to trust for the next few games—from a list of players that have not exactly set the EPL alight so far this season.

By Moyes’ own admission in the Manchester Evening News, Marouane Fellaini has been thrown in to the side too soon. He still looks a shadow of the player that wore Everton’s shirt last season and must know that he has to reach those levels again, quickly, to succeed at United.

Tom Cleverley is enduring his own “Michael Carrick” effect at the moment. Supporters can be heard questioning why he is regularly picked for the national side by England manager Roy Hodgson. His eagerness to keep play moving and distribute the ball forward is an asset. Whether he can stick to a more disciplined, safety-first role in Carrick’s absence is questionable.

The Mirror and various other sources report that Anderson has once again stated his love of playing for Manchester United. Whether his stop-start career at the club has any future, only David Moyes knows. It will be interesting to see whether he feels he can trust the Brazilian to start the game and how he will deploy him.

And what of the wingers? Antonio Valencia has shown flashes of his old self this season. A steady right-winger, he can also help defensively but will have been hampered by not having a regular right-back to communicate with. Nani and Ashley Young, however, have done nothing to suggest why they should be first-team regulars this season.

Which leaves Shinji Kagawa and the inexperienced Adnan Januzaj to battle each other for a left-sided slot at the moment, despite Kagawa only really showing his true talent for United when moved more central against Real Sociedad recently.

Whichever lineup David Moyes chooses this Sunday, his midfield will not be part of a tried and tested formula. He will be picking players not on the form they have displayed regularly for him this season, but on what he thinks that they might be able to do for his side.

Cardiff will be up for this game. Their boisterous supporters will expect no less—they have already helped their side overcome the other Mancunian title contenders, Manchester City, earlier this season. They almost sucked the ball in to the net in their 3-2 victory in August. Expect the Cardiff City Stadium to be a similar cauldron for United’s visit.

Second guessing who might make the team sheet in midfield is not an easy task in the absence of Carrick and Jones. Without the calming influence of Michael Carrick, United will require another old head to quell the ferociousness of the Welsh Dragons.

A certain proud Welshman would love the chance to play in his nation’s capital city and do just that.

It is hardly a vote for youth, but expect one Mr. Ryan Giggs to step forward.