Carrick: Always A Battle At The Bridge

He’s played against Chelsea more times than any other opponent in his Manchester United career and Michael Carrick is looking forward to another battle with the Blues on Sunday afternoon at Stamford Bridge.

Both teams may currently find themselves in less familiar positions in the table than in glory years gone by when the pair were vying for top spot in the Barclays Premier League and competing against each other in the cup competitions, but that doesn’t mean this weekend's fixture will be any less competitive. Indeed, Carrick told MUTV the Reds still hold serious title ambitions and he knows a victory on Sunday would be a huge step towards helping achieve that goal…

It must have been a good week after Tuesday’s impressive win over Stoke on the back of the victory at Derby?
Yes I think the last couple of games have probably given everyone a bit of a lift. They’ve been really positive performances with us scoring goals and playing well. It’s made a big difference. It’s been an improvement and we’ve got to carry that on. It’s a big game on Sunday and if we can do that again and build up momentum who knows where that can take us.

Some people will say the upturn in performances has coincided with your return to the side – what’s it like to be back?
It’s great to be back. It was frustrating to be out [injured] and to miss three or four weeks. I’m back now and involved and I’m excited to be playing again. Hopefully that’s it for me [for injuries] until the end of the season and I can go on a run now and stay involved. I’m looking forward to hopefully what will be an exciting finish to the season.

You were back in the starting line-up against Stoke - were your instructions simply to get the ball forward more?
The manager didn’t say that specifically to me, I think he trusts me to play my normal game like he does every player. He picked the team that night and I think you just get times when things click and players hit good form at the same time and confidence levels go up. Hopefully that’s now the case for us and we’re going to have a good run. It was a good performance by everyone on Tuesday night and quite comfortable in the end.

Has there been a deliberate change in our attacking play or has it just happened?
I think we were well aware we had to improve going forward. Defensively we’ve been pretty good for quite some time now in general, but we know we haven’t scored enough goals. We’ve been creating opportunities but we haven’t been taking our chances or the final pass has let us down. There was a real intent to attack early on Tuesday and to score, and that showed.

How do you look at things in the top four at the moment and what we can achieve in the last 14 games?
We’re still pushing for the title. We still have to believe that’s a possibility. Time will tell as the games tick by what our chances are, but it’s up to us; if we go on a run of winning games then we’d obviously give ourselves a better chance. We’ve seen over the years how the last 10 to 15 games of the season can change, that's when it’s all won and lost, so you have to finish the season well. We have to be realistic and I’m realistic about where we are [in the table], but at the same time I still believe we’ve got a chance.

United and Chelsea have battled for the title many times during the 10 years you’ve been here, but did you ever imagine you’d be going into a game against them where it’s fifth against 13th?
Yes, I know it’s quite incredible. Over the last 10 years or so we’ve both been pretty much going at it for trophies - they’ve won things and we’ve won things. Certainly after what they achieved last season you wouldn’t have expected them to be in the position they’re in and I’m sure they’d say the same thing. So it’s a bit strange but I’m sure when we get out on that pitch on Sunday it won't be about who is where in the league, it won’t have any effect on the game. Chelsea against United at Stamford Bridge is a big game and we need to improve our record down there.

What is it about Stamford Bridge which has made it a very hard place to go for United over the years?
In fairness I don’t think many teams have had a good record there, certainly over the last 10 years. They’re very hard to beat there. But over the years you could say the same about Old Trafford and teams finding it difficult to get a result there. This season has been different throughout the league in terms of results because it’s been so unpredictable. Hopefully we can go there on Sunday and turn the history books upside down and come away with a win.

You’ve played against Chelsea more times than any other team in your United career – 22 in all. In your opinion have they been the most difficult opponents in the 10 years you’ve been here?
Probably yes. They’d won the league twice when I first joined and when I came they were the main rivals for the title. Since then it’s been nip and tuck and we’ve both won things. You’ve had Arsenal and Liverpool challenging some years and of course Manchester City have come in as well, but certainly over the last 10 or 12 years Chelsea have been right up there.

Credit: Manutd.com