Michael Carrick says Manchester United have done good business this summer, but he is still pushing for more. United have spent around £85m on Andrey Santos, Youri Tielemans and several other additions, and Carrick’s line was simple enough: “We always want to improve. We want more, we need more, we keep looking for how we can do that. That never stops.”
Carrick's push for more
Carrick was also clear that the job is not finished. “There's one or two areas where we'd like to improve and we feel that there's the possibility to improve,” he said, adding that the additions have to make the group better through “quality or whether that's a little bit of depth.”
That sits against a pretty restrained spending pattern. United are the only one of the Premier League’s big six still never to have broken the £100m mark on a single player, and their current window sits well short of the kind of numbers being thrown around by Chelsea and Manchester City.
United have only nine days until their first game of the 2026/27 season, with 19 days left before the September 1 deadline. That is why the conversation around depth has become more urgent, especially with Carrick saying recruitment needs to keep pushing but also needs to be right.
Carrick's other point was football over spending. “Money's money, I get that. It's still about the football, and that's where the competition lies,” he said. For United, that feels like the correct line, but it also sounds like a manager who knows the squad is not quite where he wants it yet.
He also sounded upbeat about Marcus Rashford's place in the group after Barcelona declined their option to buy him following the loan. Carrick said Rashford is “our player” and that he “gives us something a little bit different in the group.” Rashford's 2026 season line shows 6 appearances, 231 minutes, 1 goal and 1 assist, which at least gives Carrick something to work with if he wants to bring him back in.
The transfer window still has time, but not much. United have spent, they have improved, and Carrick is still making the case for one or two more additions before the season gets going.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 2 outlets. How we work →
