Man United had to wait until the 89th minute to equalize 1-1 against Fulham at Craven Cottage. Matheus Cunha scored, helping the away team avoid their third defeat in a week.
After the match, Cunha commented that Fulham started in the second half with better energy. Match data also showed that the home team moved more than Man United by about 6 km.
However, coach Michael Carrick does not think fitness is a problem for his players.
When watching the match, I didn't see it that way. I'm quite satisfied with the way we finished the match. In fact, I think we finished the match very strongly and continued to put pressure. So, I don't think that's the problem," Carrick said.
The draw with Fulham leaves Man United with only 5 points after 5 rounds, the team's worst start in the Premier League since 2014. The Old Trafford home team is currently ranked 12th in the standings.
Carrick admitted that the season's start was "not ideal", but appreciated the players' reaction in the context that Man United had just been eliminated from the Carabao Cup by Brighton and faced the risk of another defeat.
That is very important, although we don't want to go too far because we already have one point while the goal is to win, but this is part of the team's learning process," Carrick said.
According to the English strategist, Man United's reaction to difficult times will play an important role in the team building process.
How we react, what things will be like in the future, how we react, all of that is part of the process of growing up as a team," Carrick said.
Coach Carrick also believes that Man United could have received a different result at Craven Cottage if they had not maintained their fighting spirit until the last minutes.
Today the match could definitely go in a 100% different direction. I am really satisfied with the team's reaction and I think that will help us a lot in the future," Carrick affirmed.
Man United will enter a break for national teams. The team will return to play with a match against Tottenham on October 10.
