Michael Carrick dismissed suggestions Manchester United were "on the beach" during their lacklustre draw at Sunderland, insisting his side would have been beaten had they switched off. United secured their objective for the campaign last weekend, with victory over Liverpool guaranteeing Champions League football.
Performance Under Scrutiny
But the standard and tempo of their performance appeared to drop at the Stadium of Light. They were outplayed for large portions of the match but salvaged a point courtesy of an exceptional display from goalkeeper Senne Lammens, who produced a series of brilliant stops.
At the other end, United only troubled keeper Robin Roefs in the 93rd minute, when Matheus Cunha should have done better with an opportunity following quality work from Patrick Dorgu.
Carrick's Defence
But Carrick rubbished the notion his heavily-rotated side had relaxed and argued the determination they demonstrated to claim a point under pressure proved their commitment.
He said: "I almost get offended by that, when people are accusing that because the way the players have prepared the game, the way they left the changing room... We faced a tough game, it's fine.
"I think if we weren't in a good headspace and motivated, I think we lose the game today. Sunderland played really well at certain points of the game and made us work for it."
The fact that our pride in ourselves and each other and the responsibility of playing for this great club and being part of it, certainly motivation and focus is not the reason, whether we're going to be brilliant or we're gonna have a performance where it comes a little bit more challenging.
"Whether it's today or the next two games, that won't be the case where that's affected at all."
Positive Takeaway
Despite the underwhelming display, Carrick found genuine satisfaction in the manner United were forced to scrap for a foothold in the match and ultimately came away with a share of the spoils.
He added: "It was a tough game. Credit to Sunderland, we knew it was going to be a tough game.
"We had to dig deep at times. It wasn't our best but actually to take something from the game when you're not at your best is a good trait that we're trying to build as well.
"There's obviously changes and sometimes you're trying to find that rhythm a little bit, which is understandable, but I still quite like a lot of the things we did to give us the foundation to then be able to play better at certain times. To take the point in a clean sheet for what it is, I think is okay."
