Depending on which United fan you speak to determines the answer you will get; One thing certain though is that Carrick has fans divided in their opinion of him. Some argue he isn't good enough for United, some say he is a contributing factor in the teams success over last 5 years.
Carrick has won 7 major trophies since signing from Spurs in 2006 and has made 231 appearances in that time. A very good record yet fans still dont seem to rate him; one criticism is his lack of goals from Midfield, only 17, not many when you compare it, as many fans do, to Frank Lampard who has scored 122 goals for Chelsea in the same time period. This is a unfair evaluation of Carrick though, as he isn't a attacking midfielder who grabs all the headlines. Carrick is more of a defensive midfielder but his pass completion rate and interception ratio sets him apart from others. Not quite a orthodox defensive midfielder like Barry, but more of a player who keeps the ball moving; passing it on to the more creative players in the side and keeping the game flowing like Luka Modric of Spurs.
Last season Carrick attempted 898 passes completing 780 of them that's a ratio of 86.9%, thats higher than any other EPL midfielder who started 50% of there clubs games. A lot of fans complained that they were all short sideways passes that anyone can play, If that was the case then why doesn't every player have such a high pass rate?
Not a tough tackling midfielder or attacking player, Carrick just doesn't excite fans the way a Keane or Lampard does, but with an interception ratio of 4.38 per game, the highest in the premier league, he is a highly effective defensive midfielder who starts our next attack.
I am a big fan of Carrick and what he brings to our side, I like the fact that he reads the game so well and keeps the ball moving. Unfortunately Carrick has made a few high profile errors, none more so than last years FA cup game against Man City when he gifted Toure a goal, which fans will always remember and not some of his better moments like they do with other players.
The trouble with Carrick is that apart from maybe Barry there isn't another player in the EPL who plays the way he does so it's hard for fans to relate and compare him to anyone else. What ever happens though, in the up coming season one thing is for certain Carrick will continue dividing fans opinion of him.
"A lot of fans complained that they were all short sideways passes that anyone can play, If that was the case then why doesn't every player have such a high pass rate?" Because not every player plays short sideways passes. The fact that they can, doesn't mean they do.
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