Harry Maguire Praises Michael Carrick After Man Utd Beat Brentford 2-1

Harry Maguire praises Michael Carrick for turning Manchester United’s season around

After finishing 15th last season, Man Utd are third and near the Champions League under Michael Carrick. Harry Maguire praised the coach after beating Brentford.

Man Utd’s 2-1 win over Brentford leaves them close to the Champions League...

Manchester United defender Harry Maguire praised coach Michael Carrick for the turnaround in the club’s fortunes after a 2-1 Premier League win over Brentford that leaves them close to a Champions League return after finishing 15th last season.

 

United sacked previous coach Ruben Amorim in January after a turbulent 14-month spell in charge that saw the players struggle to adapt to his tactics. Maguire credited his successor Carrick with restoring the team’s confidence and getting them back to winning ways.

“We had two tough ⁠fixtures when Michael first ‌come in, and I think everyone was probably looking at them thinking 'oh no', with Arsenal and Man City, and we managed to get the six points,” Maguire told Sky Sports after setting up Casemiro for the first goal against Brentford.

“Everyone's believed in it, and ⁠we've gathered together. We've got the confidence. We know that we can score goals from anywhere.”

Third-placed United looked comfortable as they cruised to a win that moved them to 61 points in the table, 11 clear of sixth-placed Brighton with four games left and five teams qualifying for next season’s Champions League.

Getting the job done 👊

— Manchester United (@ManUtd) April 27, 2026

United have won nine of their 13 games under Carrick, putting them on course for a return to Europe’s biggest club competition.

“The results speak for themselves - since the manager has come in, and the formation has changed, we just ‌seemed to pick up results. I think that the games previous, when Ruben was here, the games were ‌fifty-fifty, but we always ended up on the back of a defeat,” Maguire explained.

“Now it seems like it's the other way around, where we're a lot better in both boxes. We defend our ⁠box a lot better, ⁠and we're managing to ‌be clinical in the other box.”