How has Carrick transformed Manchester United?

After manager Michael Carrick took over Manchester United (MU) from Ruben Amorim, the "Red Devils" have revived with impressive form, remarkably climbing to the Top 3 in the Premier League. This is not only due to the "change of manager" effect but also Carrick's tactical adjustments.

More passes, fewer crosses

The person behind MU's resurgence is interim manager Michael Carrick with his tactical adjustments.

Under Carrick, MU's ball possession sequences have become longer and more refined. MU is executing combination sequences of 10 passes or more at a higher frequency (12.2 under Carrick, up from 9.7 under Amorim).

More ball possession often comes with a trade-off. Longer possession sequences are typically associated with a slower pace. However, interestingly, data shows MU is playing at a speed nearly equivalent to Amorim's previous period.

Amorim clearly shifted to a faster and more direct style early in the season, and that pace has hardly diminished under Carrick, only changing from 1.84 m/s to 1.83 m/s.

Even more encouraging is that a large proportion of these passes are in the opponent's half. In the final third, MU's successful passes per match have increased from 77.2 under Amorim to 90.2 under Carrick.

Playing fast while maintaining refinement is a difficult balance to achieve, requiring players with technical ability to execute, but it is the ideal most fans want to see in a MU team. Carrick has brought the team closer to achieving that.

Carrick's arrival has made MU focus more on playing through the central areas compared to Amorim's time, aiming for players to move closer together in midfield for quick combinations.

Under Carrick, MU is playing in the half-spaces more frequently than under Amorim.

However, there are still many situations where the ball goes wide, and MU creates the most threats when attacking from the right flank.

Under Carrick, Luke Shaw often moves inward to form a trio of defenders with the center backs, while the right back, usually Diogo Dalot, pushes higher to combine with Amad, creating superior pressure on the opponent on that flank. Consequently, the proportion of MU's chances created from the right wing has surged.

This is also reflected in that nearly two out of every three crosses by MU under Carrick are executed from the right flank. However, overall MU is crossing less under Carrick.

Pressing from a mid-block

Since Carrick was appointed, the average number of crosses per match has decreased from 17.1 under Amorim to 13.8. Perhaps this is understandable as Bryan Mbeumo is largely Carrick's preferred choice for the striker position, despite the form of Benjamin Sesko, who stands 1.95m tall.

MU has also changed in both out-of-possession and in-possession states. MU's average pressing initiation distance has decreased from 43.1m to 41.8m. With Amorim's 43.1m, MU was the 4th highest-pressing team in the Premier League, behind only Arsenal, Man City, and Brighton & Hove Albion over the entire season. Meanwhile, Carrick's 41.8m is only at the league average.

Carrick's first win in the Manchester derby is a typical example and it established the dominant style. A narrow and disciplined 4-4-2 block stifled Man City's through-the-lines playing space, while the attacking duo Bruno Fernandes and Mbeumo would push high and press immediately when the right moment arrived.

Additionally, Carrick's MU has also changed in set-piece situations. Currently, only Arsenal has more goals from dead-ball situations (18 goals) than MU. Five of those came under Carrick's reign, with Bruno Fernandes' deliveries to Casemiro proving particularly effective.

Under Amorim, MU joined the "long throw-in party" thanks to Dalot's ability, with 13 shots from throw-in situations. However, they have yet to have a single shot from a throw-in since Carrick took charge.

Under Carrick, we have witnessed the return of outswinging corners. Previously, Bruno and Mbeumo respectively took corners from the left and right flanks and rarely changed, but under Carrick, Bruno has sometimes returned to take duties on the right flank, adding a bit of variation.

The aforementioned changes have helped MU keep clean sheets in 10 Premier League matches under Carrick, equal to the number of clean sheets in Amorim's 20 matches this season.

At the other end of the pitch, MU is also shooting more accurately. Shot accuracy has jumped from 45.4% to 54.3%, and the conversion rate of shots into goals has also increased from 10.3% to 13.8%.

MU's defensive improvement under Carrick is reflected in the non-penalty xG (expected goals excluding penalties) conceded by MU decreasing to 0.9 per match since his arrival, compared to 1.3 before.

In summary, MU's changes under Carrick have yielded positive results, making him a strong candidate for the MU manager's position next season.