Carrick leads Manchester United’s first training with two key players returning for the Manchester City clash, as a top executive watches from the sidelines! Winning 11 matches is required to reach the Champions League.

Manchester United’s new head coach Carrick held his first training session with the coaching staff on Wednesday, preparing for Saturday’s Premier League Manchester derby at home against Manchester City. Mbemou and Amad Diallo, who returned from the Africa Cup of Nations, both took part in the practice, which will help Carrick plan his lineup for the debut match. Both players are considered essential starters.

Mbemou’s Cameroon and Amad’s Ivory Coast were both eliminated in the quarterfinals of the Africa Cup of Nations, with Cameroon losing 0-2 to host Morocco on Friday and Ivory Coast falling 2-3 to Egypt the next day. As a result, both players have returned to Carrington training ground and have completed full training sessions, making them expected to participate in Carrick’s first match as coach.

Another Manchester United player, Mazraoui, plays for Morocco, which recently reached the final after beating Nigeria 4-2 on penalties in the semifinals. Morocco will compete against Senegal for the title one day after the Premier League round, so Mazraoui will definitely miss the match against Manchester City.

At Carrington, 44-year-old Carrick directed training alongside assistant coach Steve Holland, with Jonathan Woodgate and Jonny Evans assisting. The coaching staff assessed the situation and finalized training content during the players’ day off on Tuesday. Among the players preparing were several Manchester United academy talents, including Shay Leacy, Jack and Tyler Fletcher, and Habib Ogunnie. Leacy will be suspended for the Manchester City match due to a red card in the FA Cup against Brighton, while Jack and Tyler are twin sons of caretaker coach Darren Fletcher, who has returned to coach the U18s; they remain with the first team.

While Carrick coached the Manchester United players, the controversial sporting director Jason Wilcox also monitored the session from the sidelines. Wilcox often watches training, but his presence has drawn more attention since the dismissal of Rúben Amorim. Wilcox claims to be the behind-the-scenes manager, whereas Amorim was only the head coach, which angered the 40-year-old Portuguese coach.

After Amorim’s departure, Wilcox gathered the players in the locker room and stated that Manchester United’s goal for this season remains to qualify for the Champions League. British media analysis suggests this means the Red Devils must win 11 of the remaining 17 Premier League matches.

Manchester United currently sits seventh with 32 points from 21 rounds, and if they continue at this pace, it may not be enough to secure a Champions League spot. Fans are well aware that Amorim’s team squandered many excellent opportunities, failing to win matches they should have easily taken, such as those against bottom-placed Wolves and Burnley.

Carrick faces a tougher schedule, starting with matches against second-placed Manchester City and league leaders Arsenal. However, one positive aspect is that finishing fifth in the Premier League again would almost guarantee Manchester United a return to the Champions League next season.

Currently, Brentford holds fifth place, but few expect the “Bees” to maintain their position until the end. Historically, the fifth-place Premier League team finishes with between 66 and 69 points, three times ending on 66 points. Therefore, Carrick’s Manchester United can set 66 points as their target. Brentford currently has only 33 points, below the typical 36 to 40 points fifth-place tally at this stage in the past five years. This suggests it might require fewer than 66 points to secure a Champions League spot this season.

To reach the 66-point target in the remaining 17 Premier League matches, Manchester United must earn 34 points. This is a challenging task that would require 11 wins and 1 draw, or 10 wins and 4 draws, or 9 wins and 7 draws. Given Carrick’s first two games are against the top two teams, the difficulty is increased. If they fail to win against Manchester City and Arsenal, they would need to win 11 of the remaining 15 matches!

However, this is no easy feat, as Manchester United’s opponents also include direct Champions League rivals Newcastle United, Aston Villa, Chelsea, and Liverpool.

The Manchester Evening News speculates that Carrick could aim to beat teams such as Fulham, Tottenham, West Ham, Everton, Crystal Palace, Villa, Leeds United, Brentford, Liverpool, and Nottingham Forest, while matches against Bournemouth, Sunderland, and Brighton are also winnable.