Manchester United rescued a 1-1 draw against Fulham thanks to Matheus Cunha’s late equaliser on Sunday, but the pressure is mounting on boss Michael Carrick after their latest lacklustre display.
Carrick’s side were in dire need of a victory at Craven Cottage but instead left grateful for a point.
United fell behind in the second half to a farcical own goal from Lisandro Martinez, who diverted the ball into his own net after Senne Lammens had saved Calvin Bassey’s shot.
Although Cunha’s last-gasp leveller spared United from a third successive defeat, there was little reason for celebration for Carrick and his beleaguered team.
United have just one win in five Premier League matches and already trail leaders Manchester City by 10 points.
They have lost three of their first seven games in all competitions this season and head into the international break with Carrick under intense scrutiny.
Carrick has insisted that he does not care about his future at Old Trafford.
But after successive gut-punch defeats against Manchester City and Brighton, this was another setback to his reeling regime.
Shell-shocked by Erling Haaland’s winner for City in last weekend’s derby — which the referees’ governing body later admitted should have been disallowed — United blew a 2-0 lead against Brighton in the League Cup third round on Wednesday.
Barely escaping with a draw against second-from-bottom Fulham was another indignity in a season already full of forgettable moments for United.
Expected to at least match last season’s third place finish, United have gone backwards since Carrick was appointed as manager on a permanent basis following his successful interim spell.
United return to action with a home game against bottom of the table Tottenham on October 10, with Carrick and Spurs boss Roberto De Zerbi both desperate for a win that would turn the tide.
– Fatal cocktail –
Foreshadowing their afternoon of struggle, United were fortunate not to fall behind in the opening moments when Fulham forward Gonzalo Garcia dragged his shot wide from a dangerous position.
That narrow escape triggered a response from United as Bruno Fernandes picked out Martinez for a stinging strike from the edge of the penalty area, forcing Bernd Leno to make a superb save.
United went close again when Cunha pulled his pass back to Fernandes, whose fierce strike cannoned off the post.
But United were jittery at the back and Josh King’s half-volley forced a good save from Lammens before the goalkeeper denied Sander Berge with another smart stop.
Oscar Bobb should have beaten Lammens moments later, but he was off target with a golden opportunity to break the deadlock.
With United far too open, Fulham poured forward in waves in the closing minutes of the first half.
Lammens had to claw away another blast from King, then raced off his line to frustrate Alex Iwobi as the pressure mounted.
United’s lack of drive and cutting edge, combined with some shambolic defending, provided a fatal cocktail that led to Fulham’s opener.
After Cunha carelessly conceded possession deep inside United’s half, Carrick’s men were slow to react as Bassey unloaded a powerful strike which was palmed out by Lammens.
Martinez tried to clear the ball but his bizarrely mistimed swipe directed the ball back into his own net via a deflection off the despairing Lammens.
Leno kept out Bryan Mbeumo’s curler and plunged to his left to save Cunha’s low drive as United tried desperately to salvage a point.
United’s late flurry brought an equaliser in the 89th minute.
Cunha tried his luck from distance and his shot took a wicked deflection off David Affengruber. For once, Carrick’s luck was in.
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