Carrick Rejects Claims of Easy Start for Manchester United

Michael Carrick is having none of it.

The Manchester United head coach has branded as “ridiculous” the suggestion that his side have been handed a soft landing at the start of the new Premier League season.

United open away at Hull on Saturday, taking on last season’s Championship play-off winners, before welcoming Ipswich to Old Trafford on 30 August. With both opponents freshly promoted, the fixture list has been painted in some quarters as an ideal platform for United to surge out of the blocks and extend the momentum of last year’s third-place finish – a campaign that helped Carrick secure the job on a permanent basis.

Carrick doesn’t buy that narrative for a second.

“A newly promoted team away from home is a tough game,” he said, looking ahead to the trip to Hull. “I've been involved in them in the past so I'm fully aware of what's coming at us on Saturday and what we've got to be ready for.”

He pushed back hard at the idea that United have been given any sort of advantage.

“It's not favourable. It's an easy thing to throw out there but it's pretty ridiculous. I'm not taking it that way at all.”

United arrive under pressure to show they can turn last season’s progress into a sustained title challenge. The outside expectation is clear: beat Hull, beat Ipswich, and set the tone. Carrick’s message is just as clear. There will be no shortcuts, no excuses, and certainly no talk of an easy start inside his dressing room.