Michael Carrick Dismisses Soft Launch Talk for Manchester United

Michael Carrick has dismissed talk of Manchester United being handed a soft launch to the new Premier League season as “ridiculous”, warning that trips to newly promoted sides are anything but straightforward.

United open their campaign on Saturday away to Hull, the Championship play-off winners, before welcoming Ipswich to Old Trafford on 30 August. On paper, it looks gentle. Two teams fresh up from the second tier, one of them at home, for a side that finished third last season and earned Carrick the job on a permanent basis.

Carrick is having none of it.

“A newly promoted team away from home is a tough game,” he said, drawing on his years of experience in similar early-season traps. He knows what awaits: a packed stadium, a team riding the high of promotion, and a fanbase desperate to make a statement against one of the division’s heavyweights.

“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 added.

The narrative around United has been simple: strong finish last season, stability in the dugout, and what some see as a forgiving opening schedule. The expectation from outside is that they should “hit the ground running” and extend last year’s form without missing a beat.

Carrick pushed back firmly.

“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 travel to Hull with momentum but also with a manager determined to shut down any sense of complacency before a ball is kicked. The fixtures might look kind. Carrick is treating them like a test of his team’s edge.