“Michael Carrick is one of my favourite footballers around. I sometimes joke that he’s the Geordie Guardiola, then I realise that Guardiola may have been the Catalan Carrick. I like alliterations. Anyways, he’s come in for a huge amount of stick over the years, and I’ve felt the need to defend him on numerous occasions, not least to my fellow Manchester United supporters.” crimes against humility