Carrick labels Keane criticism 'irrelevant'
Michael Carrick came under criticism from former Manchester United midfielder Roy Keane, but the interim head coach paid no attention to it, calling criticism from ex-players "irrelevant".
The former Red Devils midfielder replaced Darren Fletcher in the role earlier this week and will take charge of his first game on Saturday, which will be the Manchester derby.
Both Carrick's and Fletcher's appointments drew criticism from Roy Keane on The Overlap and Stick To Football podcast, which also features another former Red Devils star, Gary Neville, and Keane accused the club of nepotism.
Keane also branded Carrick's wife as "a big mouth", referring to a deleted social media post by Lisa Carrick on the Irishman after his assessment of Carrick's post-match interview after United's UEFA Champions League defeat to Olympiacos in 2014.
This will be Carrick's second stint as manager at United, after an unbeaten three-game spell between November and December in 2021.
Carrick is adamant that the criticism from people such as Keane does not make his job harder, as he is fully focused on the task at hand.
"They're not putting more pressure on me," Carrick said. "I don't feel that.
"There are plenty of opinions around, some positive, some not too much. It's totally irrelevant in terms of what I focus on.
"There's a lot that can be said, it's the way of the world. I'm not going to pay too much attention to that.
"For me, the players and staff, we focus on how we're going to succeed."
One former team-mate who has backed Carrick to succeed is Wayne Rooney.
Rooney and Carrick played 366 times together for the Red Devils, lifting five Premier League titles during their time at Old Trafford.
"Michael's great fun. He is a great character, but don't be fooled by how calm he looks," Rooney said on the latest edition of The Wayne Rooney Show.
"He can have fun as well, but make no mistake, he'd be going in there now with full focus.
"It is probably the obvious choice really because I don't think there are any top, top managers available at the minute.
"I think it is the right choice at this moment in time.
"It is a difficult task of course. Where Manchester United are at the minute is not a good place and Michael has to go in and steady the ship."
