Carrick Bemoans Goals

Michael Carrick believes Manchester United were the better team on Sunday, before being undone by two Chelsea goals either side of half-time.

The Reds dominated the early exchanges at Stamford Bridge but fell behind in unfortunate circumstances when Samuel Eto’o’s shot deflected off Carrick to beat David De Gea.

David Moyes’ men pressed for an equaliser but suffered a body blow just before the break when Eto’o bagged his second. And things went from bad to worse when the Chelsea striker completed his hat-trick five minutes after the interval.

Even then, the Reds kept going and pulled one back through substitute Javier Hernandez. But the damage had already been done and Nemanja Vidic’s late sending-off capped an unhappy afternoon.

"The end of the first half killed us," Carrick admitted to MUTV. "I thought we were the better team for large periods of the first half, so to find ourselves 2-0 down was a blow.

"We said at half-time that if we got the next goal, we’d be right in the game, but it was an uphill task when the third one went in. Both those goals came at bad times and, at this level, they shape the game."

Moyes said United could "only blame ourselves" for the defensive lapses that contributed to Chelsea’s second and third goals, and Carrick agreed with that assessment.

"We have to defend better from set-pieces," the midfielder said. "From open play they didn’t look that dangerous – we didn’t feel they were much of a threat.

"But we need to create more ourselves. Even after getting one back to give ourselves a sniff, we couldn’t create that opportunity to get one more."

United’s vociferous travelling support once again did themselves proud and Carrick wants to reward them by reaching a Wembley final in the next game, Wednesday’s Capital One Cup semi-final second leg against Sunderland at Old Trafford.

"The fans have been unbelievable over the last month or so and we have a lot to thank them for," Carrick said. "We’re giving everything at the minute but it’s not going our way. If we all stick together, I’m sure it’ll turn soon.

"We don’t want to write anything off. It’s not a position we’re accustomed to but we won’t give up. We’ll keep fighting – that’s what we do.

"We want to play again as quickly as possible. Wednesday is another huge game for us, an opportunity to get to a final – you can’t take that lightly. We’ll get over this, dust ourselves down and get ready for it."