Bruno Fernandes turns on Michael Carrick after Como disaster: 'The staff's decision'

21 Oct 2026 21:00 BST
4 min read

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Bruno Fernandes publicly questioned Michael Carrick’s tactics after Manchester United were outclassed by Como.

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The Red Devils suffered one of their most humiliating European defeats in the Champions League, when they were beaten 4-1 by a rampant Como side on Wednesday. It was a disastrous display, marred by individual errors and horrific defending.

Joshua Zirkzee’s late consolation goal meant nothing in the grand scheme of things, and it was telling that under-fire head coach Carrick went straight to the travelling away fans to apologise after the game. He then stormed straight down the tunnel without acknowledging his players.

It remains to be seen if the 45-year-old will survive this mauling. Carrick has overseen Man Utd’s worst start to a season in 40 years, and this latest result has only hammered home that something is seriously wrong with the Old Trafford club.

Ahead of the match, Como boss Cesc Fabregas refused to speak about Carrick’s position, deeming it disrespectful. However, calls for Man Utd to hire a Fabregas-style manager will only grow louder following this result.

Fernandes hits out at Carrick

While Man Utd’s issues run deeper than just the head coaching position – it was only last week that Lisandro Martinez openly bemoaned the hierarchy’s lack of investment – Carrick isn’t at all free from blame.

His tactics have been described as outdated and clearly are no longer working. The magic of his interim spell has firmly dissipated, and it is hard to imagine that he will come away from this Como disaster unscathed – particularly after the comments of Bruno Fernandes.

The Man Utd captain was hooked for Zirkzee in the 65th minute and was seen walking off the pitch, shaking his head. After the match, Fernandes let loose on Carrick’s tactics. “Obviously, it’s not the first time,” the 32-year-old began.

“Again, we started with the wrong foot. They scored very early. I think [we had] not much pressure on the ball, not really many good moments without the ball, many things not going our way.

“Conceding the goal very early makes us feel, going into the game, already in the mood of a defeat, and it’s very difficult to get out of that at the moment. Without being ourselves and trying to push, trying to be brave, trying to have the ball, trying to make something happen – if we’re not able to do that, it’s going to be very difficult to get out of this situation.

When asked about the team’s lack of cohesion in the press, Fernandes firmly put the blame at the feet of “the staff.” He said: “It’s a decision from the staff to not press man-to-man and sometimes leave a little bit of space in behind and try to get the ball in the first moment, to wait for them, to give them the ball.

“But sometimes when you give too much of the ball to these teams, they get confidence, you know? They have so many bodies behind the ball that make you run a lot, make people get frustrated. And then, obviously, when we recover the ball, for the legs – and the brain – it’s much more difficult to make it work.”

Did Carrick get his tactics wrong? “That’s on the manager and on the staff to see, it is not on me,” Fernandes responded. “I just said that I think sometimes we have to be more brave under pressure, trying to take the risk of getting that press very high and making them uncomfortable, as they did to us.

“As you saw, the centre-back was coming to mark me all the way into my own half. And I think sometimes, we had to do that as a team, and we were not really able to do it.

“A team that wants to play through the middle and likes small connections, if you give them too much time on the ball to think and to rotate in the middle of the pitch, then they create a big space on the outside. That’s what they did, and the first goal comes from that.”

Michael Carrick apologising to the Manchester United fans at full-time.
#MUFC https://t.co/Uip2kRpBVL
— Laurie Whitwell (@lauriewhitwell) October 21, 2026

Carrick: I take full responsibility

Speaking after the match, Carrick insisted that he takes full responsibility for this dismal performance. “It was more than disappointing,” the 45-year-old stated.

“I think everybody’s got to take responsibility for that. I’ll take responsibility for the overall team and performance. It stops with me, and I’m fine with that. But as a supporter of this football club, to see a performance like that is unacceptable, I have to say.

“I’ll look at what we’ve done. It’s the motivation and the purpose and the intensity of a game of football that you have to bring. We didn’t bring that today. You can’t choose when you want to perform, or you don’t, when you give absolutely everything and when perhaps you don’t.

“I care an unbelievable amount about the supporters. They’re the heartbeat of this football club and always will be. I’ve got to apologise for the performance.

“Everything they’ve done to get here tonight, for them to watch that performance tonight – I feel for them. Tonight’s not about me. It’s about digesting the game and how it went. That’s the most important thing right now.”

Time will tell if Carrick will get the opportunity to “digest the game.”