Manchester United slumped further into crisis with a 3-0 home defeat to Bournemouth on Sunday that plunged Michael Carrick’s future as manager into doubt.
Carrick’s bold decision to drop captain Bruno Fernandes backfired as defeat stretched United’s winless run to eight games and left them 16th in the Premier League, just one point above the relegation zone.
For the third time in four seasons, the Cherries won 3-0 at Old Trafford as goals from Rayan, Marcus Tavernier, and Evanilson secured a fully deserved win for Marco Rose’s side.
Fernandes was critical of Carrick’s tactics in a 4-1 thrashing by Champions League debutants Como on Wednesday.
The United boss said the decision to leave out last season’s Premier League player of the year was a “purely football” driven, but it was hard to believe Fernandes was not being punished as he was left on the bench for the entire match.
Carrick was taunted with chants of “you’re getting sacked in the morning” from the Bournemouth fans.
But on this evidence, dismissing another manager is far from a quick fix for a club that has fallen dramatically from grace since Alex Ferguson’s retirement 13 years ago.
A strong finish to last season during Carrick’s interim spell in charge secured third place in the Premier League, but was aided by a lack of European or domestic cup football.
United have won just twice—against newly-promoted Ipswich and Azerbaijani side Sabah – in 12 games in all competitions this season.
