India, May 8 -- Their narrative arc is related. You cannot speak of Kobbie Mainoo and not mention Michael Carrick. If Mainoo can dream of times like these, it is because in him Carrick trusts. Manchester United may take their time to decide on Carrick as a fulltime head coach (more on that later) but Mainoo's new five-year deal is one of the few things in recent memory that the club has got right.

And it showed on Sunday. From no starts under Ruben Amorim in 2025-26 and no Premier League goal in nearly two years to the winner against Liverpool is proof of why trying to shoehorn players into a system does not work. On way to unleashing the shot before Domink Szobiszlai could slide in a tackle, Mainoo ran a few small steps that felt like a...