Sir Alex Ferguson wants Michael Carrick's critics to start
concentrating on the positive aspects of the midfielder's
game.
After a slow start to life at Manchester United, Carrick is finally
starting to come into his own.
The £18.6million summer signing from Tottenham followed up an
excellent display at Wigan last week by producing his best Red
Devils performance so far in Saturday's astounding four-goal
hammering of Bolton at the Reebok Stadium.
Showing all the range of passing which attracted Ferguson in the
first place, Carrick set up Wayne Rooney's opener with a superb
chipped ball beyond the Trotters defence and was then equally
precise in finding Louis Saha in the build-up to United's
third.
So, after a couple of months in which many pundits wondered
precisely why Ferguson has invested so much money in a player many
argue is not quick, hardly a tigerish tackler and does not score
that often, the evidence is now forthcoming.
"People are always picking on things players can't do whereas they
should actually be concentrating on the things they can," said the
United boss.
"Michael is one of those unassuming quiet guys, who just goes about
his job and never gives the ball away.
"But his range of passing can win you games. He has great potential
and is a real Manchester United player."
Carrick is certainly starting to prove he can enjoy a productive
central-midfield partnership with Paul Scholes, a duo some claimed
was too weak defensively to be effective.
The pair are set to continue in the United engine room against FC
Copenhagen on Wednesday, even though Ferguson could field a
weakened team in the Danish capital knowing a single point from his
side's final three games will be enough to guarantee a place in the
last 16.