Carrick Convinced United Will Improve

Michael Carrick is adamant that Manchester United will enjoy a positive season under Louis van Gaal, having taken note of the team’s gutsy performances against title favourites Chelsea and Manchester City.

The 33-year-old returned from injury in Sunday’s derby defeat at the Etihad Stadium, which was his first appearance of the new regime after suffering ankle ligament damage in July.

Although the Reds were ultimately beaten by Sergio Aguero’s solitary goal, Carrick and his team-mates could draw some consolation from the spirited display that followed Chris Smalling’s first-half dismissal. The job now is to start earning the results that such courageous outings deserve.

“When we look at the points total, we are bitterly disappointed with the amount we have got,” said Michael. “It's nowhere near good enough for where we want to be. But if you can look deeper than that, there are signs that we certainly believe we are still going to have a good year and a good season.

“It’s just little things that aren't going for us and we are making little errors, but overall the feeling is that we are building to be successful and we will be - it’s just frustrating at the minute. It's not been a great start but I think the feeling is better than that. Hopefully we can show that in the weeks to come.”

Asked why he is so convinced of the Reds' success, Carrick continued: “I think you get a feeling when you are in the squad like I have been over the years. You get a sense around the place.

“Certainly at the moment it's a positive place, we believe we are going in the right direction and we are not far off being where we want to be. It's just little things and those little things make a big difference. Points count. There is a real feeling that we can still do something special.”

Carrick feels United are indeed closing the gap on Chelsea and City, at least in terms of performance levels, but also remains adamant that the Reds must step up again over the coming months.

“We've played them both in the last week and points wise it suggests that we are not [closing the gap]. But if you look deeper than that, last weekend against Chelsea we felt we deserved the three points. But it’s easy to say that and they would probably say the same thing. Against City we felt we deserved more.

“But we are experienced enough to know points is what you are judged on. It is alright me saying we feel good and positive, but it's up to us in the weeks ahead before Christmas to have a good push and get ourselves back up there again.”