Michael Carrick weighs in on Man Utd mistake branded 'one of the biggest ever'

Michael Carrick has opened up on his admiration for Scott McTominay, who has enjoyed a new lease of life since leaving Manchester United. The midfielder was sold to Napoli last summer having been deemed surplus to requirements by former boss Erik ten Hag. The move has reignited McTominay's career, with the Scotland international emerging as one of Napoli's best players.

He was instrumental in helping them to win Serie A last season, scoring 12 goals and chipping in with another six assists. His consistently strong displays earned the admiration of fans and saw him receive the league's player of the season award. Carrick, who worked with McTominay during his time as a coach at United, is not surprised that he is doing so well.

Speaking on the podcast, Carrick said: "We played a lot with him and Fred and actually had a lot of good success in many ways with the two of them.

"He was kind of the box-to-box, if you like, done a bit of everything, but more defensive. He was reliable, he had a fantastic attitude, great to work with. But he always had, and in training, he always had an eye for goal.

"He was a great finisher, getting in the box, and he had that. I never really had it, but with certain lads, getting around the box is just that extra bit of time to finish. Like a Lamps [Frank Lampard], you know?

"I know Lamps was obviously the best of the best of that, but he's got a sense of that, getting in the box and it drops to him, like it's goals, he's just finding that.

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"He always had it and we tried a couple of times and just because of the make-up with the team, it didn't quite work at that time, but there was always something in there where you think he's got goals in him."

Carrick added that McTominay's impressive rise has been bittersweet, given that he is no longer a United player.

"I'm so happy that he's gone to do well because he deserves it," added the former Middlesbrough boss. "I'm sad that it's not at United because I think he's kind of the one that you want at the club.

"He just drives everything, he's a heart and soul, but to see him go on and do well, it speaks volumes. There's no-one taking that. He's had ups and downs, big ups and downs, and he's gone on, and actually he's not looked back now."

It comes after Benni McCarthy, another former United coach, branded their decision to sell McTominay as 'one of the biggest mistakes in football'.

Speaking earlier this month, McCarthy said: "Of course, there are different reasons why you sell homegrown players sometimes. When they go, the profit lets you sign more players.

"Having said that, it was one of the biggest mistakes in football to let him leave. He was born to play for United. Maybe he wasn't the most technical, but he had fight."

Listen to the full Rio Meets Michael Carrick interview available now on Apple Podcasts and Spotify and on the from 5pm GMT.