📅 November 3, 2026
Carrick on ‘Two Games Left’: No, Not at All. Shaw and Dorgu Out, Yoro a Doubt for Roma
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Michael Carrick says he doesn’t think he’s down to his last two games. Asked on Monday whether Roma and Aston Villa are all he has left, he answered “No, not at all,” and then gave the more honest version: “You never know what’s going to happen.”
He also ruled Luke Shaw and Patrick Dorgu out of tonight’s game, and left Leny Yoro and Marcus Rashford in doubt. That changes the picture from Monday morning’s training session, when Yoro looked available.
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“You might think I’m crazy”
The question came because of what’s been reported over the weekend: that United will keep Carrick for Roma and Villa and then look again over the international break, as we covered on Sunday. He didn’t argue with the reporting. He just wouldn’t let it into the build-up.
“You might think I’m crazy with the results we’ve had,” he said, per AFP, but he says he “can’t wait for the game tomorrow.” On what comes after, the full transcript has him saying: “Whatever happens is going to happen after that, in whatever direction it goes in.”
That’s a manager who knows exactly where he stands. It’s also the right thing to say the night before a game United have to win.
Martinez and the dressing room
He was asked about Lisandro Martinez after Saturday’s red card at Stamford Bridge, and he backed him. He has “no concerns” about the defender’s commitment, and he said “commitment is not an issue.” dave.sport reports that his ban is domestic only, so he’s available tonight, and Sports Mole’s team news doesn’t list him as suspended.
On the squad more widely, Carrick said “perception is a funny thing” and that he doesn’t question the players’ commitment “at all.” It’s a defence of the group rather than an answer to why it keeps losing, and he more or less admitted that: AFP has him saying “we need to play better.”
Team news: Shaw and Dorgu out, Yoro and Rashford doubts
Dorgu trained on Monday for the first time since his hamstring injury, but Carrick said “he won’t be involved tomorrow.” Shaw is out too: “Luke definitely won’t be around this week.”
Yoro is the new worry. Carrick said he’s had a tendon problem, and Football Italia reads him as a big doubt. On Rashford, he said they’ll have to see “day by day” how he keeps improving. Neither sounds like a player you’d bank on starting.
Our training report on Monday had Yoro available, because his European ban has been served. That’s still true, but the tendon issue came up after that piece was published.
Mainoo’s line
Kobbie Mainoo sat alongside him and kept it simple: “I feel like we’re one win away from changing that.” The run is nine games without a win in all competitions, per AFP and dave.sport, and Roma at Old Trafford is the chance to end it.
Carrick, who scored twice in the 7-1 win over Roma in 2007, called that one “a magical night.” He’ll take a lot less than that tonight. Kick-off is 3 PM ET (8 PM UK).
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Sources: Carrick’s quotes on his future, Martinez, the dressing room and the injuries come from the press-conference transcript at The Peoples Person (2 Nov 2026), checked against Football Italia (Peter Young, 2 Nov 2026, 14:23) and AFP via The National (3 Nov 2026); we’ve quoted only wording that appears in at least two of them. Mainoo’s quote is from The Peoples Person and AFP. The nine-game winless run is from AFP and dave.sport (James Chettle, 2 Nov 2026, 16:21). The 2007 result is from AFP and Football Italia. Martinez’s domestic-only ban is dave.sport’s report; Sports Mole (Seye Omidiora, 2 Nov 2026, 20:00) doesn’t list him as suspended. The kick-off is from dave.sport and Sports Mole (8 PM UK) and Paramount+ (3 PM ET, 27 Oct 2026). “We need to play better” is AFP only. Yoro being a “big doubt” is Football Italia’s reading, not Carrick’s words. Not included: United’s Champions League league-phase position, because the reports we read don’t agree on it, and any return date for Shaw, Rashford or Yoro, which nobody has given.