“It’s great to see players you try to help at certain points,” Michael Carrick said in his pre-match briefing before Everton vs Manchester United. The Manchester United manager used the session to praise James Garner and Hayden Hackney, then turned back to the job in hand at Everton.

Carrick’s praise for two former midfielders

Garner was the more obvious name in the room. Carrick praised the midfielder, who came through the Manchester United academy before United sold him to Everton in the summer of 2022 for £15million. “It’s great to see Jimmy go on and do so well, get in an England squad and push for a World Cup place,” Carrick said.

The other name was Hackney, and Carrick’s link there comes from his spell in charge of Middlesbrough, where he worked closely with the midfielder. “Granted, come Sunday, we don’t want them to do too well, but as a coach, and just on a personal level, to see people and lads you know do so well is good,” he said. That is the part of the briefing that stood out most, and it was stronger than the usual pre-match noise.

United's team news before Sunday

Carrick also offered a clearer update on the squad. Mason Mount is back around the group and has trained this week after a foot injury. He has made only 2 appearances this season and played just 163 minutes, so the return to training is welcome without solving everything overnight.

Luke Shaw is back in training too, while Benjamin Šeško and Joshua Zirkzee remain part of the moving parts around selection. The more eye-catching test still sits on the fixture itself, with Sunday’s trip to Everton set for a 2pm kick-off at Hill Dickinson Stadium. Carrick was blunt about the size of the task: “Going to Everton away is always tough, and the game can change and flip so quickly with the supporters and the atmosphere they generate.”

That warning fits the job ahead. United won the last league meeting at Everton 1-0 on 23 February 2026, but Carrick still expects a hard afternoon and said his side will need to be close to, if not at, their best to get the result they want.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 3 outlets. How we work →