Man Utd can achieve ‘something special’, claims Michael Carrick as he talks up Marcus Rashford return

MICHAEL CARRICK believes Manchester United can achieve “something special” in his first full season in charge. Carrick took over as temporary coach in January before presiding over 12 wins and only two defeats in 17 games as United came an unlikely third in the Premier League. United beat Leeds on penalties at Croke Park Credit: AFP United collected some silverware in Dublin Credit: PA With Carrick now the permanent head coach, the vast improvement he has overseen has fuelled talk of a title challenge, with a number of United players bullishly claiming they are ready for a tilt. United’s workload is certain to increase with the club back in the Champions League but they have enjoyed a stable pre-season, their first in Europe since 2002. Sign up for the Man United newsletter Thank you! Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City and Tottenham have ventured as far as Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and the United States. The furthest United have travelled to has been Helsinki in Finland. Carrick said of his squad’s confidence: “First and foremost, for the players to believe that, it puts us all in a good place. “I think you’ve got to have the belief, you’ve got to be going into the season thinking we can achieve something special. Don’t be going into a season thinking this could be a struggle. “We’ve got to set out to really achieve something. So for the players to believe that, first and foremost, my words are words, I sit here and tell you anything. “But they’ve got to go out there and do it and feel it. So for them to have that, and I feel it around them, you know, that excitement of if something’s possible without getting carried away because of the whole challenge ahead of us. “But we’re coming from a good position at the moment and we’ll have to see. Most read in Sport BEST ONLINE CASINOS – TOP SITES IN THE UK “I’m not going to make any crazy predictions, but I think on the back of what we’ve done, I keep saying it, I think that gives us the confidence to move forward. “How quickly we keep moving forward, that’s the challenge, but as long as we’re stable and we can keep moving in the direction, I think that’s what we can ask. “We’ve definitely got the potential to achieve something really special. I’m not hiding from the fact, and we should aim to do that. “But I can’t give you a definite answer on [can United win the title], but it’s certainly what we’re pushing to do because we have to, because that’s the club we are.” Carrick was non-committal on the future of Marcus Rashford, who rejoined the group for the first time in 18 months on Sunday. Rashford, 28, is set to make his first United appearance since December 12 2024 in their final pre-season friendly against AC Milan in Wroclaw on Saturday. Barcelona passed on the option to sign Rashford for £26m and he has two years left on his contract. A number of clubs are in the market to sign a winger. Rashford watches on in Dublin Credit: Alamy Rashford is back in United training Credit: Getty Carrick reiterated: “He’s our player. He’s part of the group like anybody else. He came in, he’s trained really well. “I’ve known him a long time, like I’ve known some of the others a long time, so I don’t treat him any differently to anybody else. “But it’s been good to have him around the group again this week. So I’m really positive with that. “He’s a very good player, Marcus, and I think if you’re going to have a career over ten or 15 years, there’s going to be times when things go in a direction and maybe a different direction. “All right, that happens. I think there’s ups and downs, and that doesn’t judge you as a one-off kind of judgement. “It’s what happens over time, and now we’re in a positive place as a group, and Marcus can offer us so much. He has done, and he can do again, so in that respect, it’s quite exciting.” Carrick managed Rashford for three games as caretaker in 2021 Credit: Getty Images Rashford started games for England at the World Cup Credit: Getty When asked whether Rashford was not for sale, Carrick replied: “He’s our player. He’s our player, and he’s a good player, and he gives us something a little bit different in the group. “And as I said, around this week, it’s been great. The feeling within the group’s good. “Marcus came back in, Kobbie (Mainoo)’s come back in, Licha (Martinez)’s come back in, and it’s made us stronger. “So we want to keep getting stronger.” Comment now