Michael Carrick happy to fight for United spot
After complaining about a lack of cover in midfield last season, United manager Louis van Gaal spent more than £40m (€56m) on Schweinsteiger, who arrived from Bayern Munich, and former Southampton man Schneiderlin this summer.
That means Carrick is no longer the automatic pick he was last season.
The player, who turned 34 yesterday, has no problem competing with the new arrivals though and hopes their introduction will be a positive move for the club.
“You want the best players here, and it’s good for the squad, for the team,” Carrick said. “Morgan is a good player. He has done terrific. It’s another step for him in his career and there’s no better place to be.
“We all know what Basti brings. He is a terrific player and he’ll have a big influence on us going forward.”
Despite the fanfare surrounding his signing, Schweinsteiger has failed to impress so far on United’s pre-season tour of the US. The German World Cup winner is yet to start a game, with Van Gaal preferring to use Carrick and Schneiderlin as holding midfielders in the 4-2-3-1 formation he has used in the three games so far.
Schweinsteiger looked relatively comfortable in the first game against Club America in Seattle, but Van Gaal described the midfielder’s performance against San Jose Earthquakes as “bad” and he missed the 3-1 win over Barcelona with a minor injury.
The 30-year-old is fit to feature in United’s final game of the tour against Paris St Germain in Chicago in the early hours tonight, however. Carrick thinks United are in a much better position heading into the new season than they were 12 months ago.
“I think we’re stronger in numbers, in strength and depth and in quality this year.”
Goalkeeper Sergio Romero is available to face PSG but may not do so having spent just two days with his new team-mates since signing a three-year deal with United. Angel di Maria is still absent amid claims he is close to a move to the French champions.
United meanwhile are unlikely to bid for another centre-back if they fail in their pursuit of Real Madrid’s Sergio Ramos. After claims Ramos wanted out of Real Madrid, United offered to swap David de Gea for the 29-year-old defender.
However, it has become increasingly apparent that proposal will not be accepted, with Real Madrid manager Rafael Benitez recently stating he was “100%” sure Ramos would stay.
Nicolas Otamendi has been viewed as a possible alternative for United should Ramos decide to stay at Real Madrid, but it is understood manager Louis van Gaal has no interest in the Valencia centre-back. Instead Van Gaal would be happy to go into the new season without another centre-half if the Ramos move does not come off.
Sources at United point out the club had the fourth best defensive record in the Premier League last year, although De Gea’s excellent form was key to that record. Van Gaal is also willing to use Carrick at centre-back if needed.
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