Asked directly whether he felt the ground shifting under his job, Carrick’s answer was flat.

“I don’t feel under pressure. Either way, that doesn’t bother me one bit. It generally doesn’t bother me one bit. I understand what goes on outside and how the world works, but it doesn’t bother me,” he told reporters.

The line landed after one of the most damaging home defeats of the post-Ferguson era. United raced into a 2-0 lead inside ten minutes through Shea Lacey and Mason Mount, then were dismantled by Brighton, who scored through Charalampos Kostoulas in first-half stoppage time, Pascal Gross on 65 minutes and Maxim De Cuyper on 69. It was the first time in 50 years that United had lost at Old Trafford after leading by two, having won 143 of the previous 145 matches from that position.

Carrick accepts the second half was on him

Alongside the defiant framing on his own future, Carrick did not dodge the collapse itself.

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“We can’t accept that as a group. I take responsibility for it. The performance towards the end of the second half, that’s on me,” he said.

He was equally direct on the reaction from the stands, where boos rang around Old Trafford at the final whistle.

“Yeah of course, that’s pretty obvious. I totally understand the feelings of the supporters. We have to accept it. I totally accept it.”

‘The feeling around the place feels bigger’

Carrick also acknowledged that the mood at the club had already been heavy before Brighton walked out with the tie.

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“We’ve gone out of the cup and the feeling around the place feels bigger than that. I’m happy enough to be honest about that. That’s how it feels,” Carrick said, in comments carried by Sky Sports.

“Of course we can turn it around. We’ve got some really good players and it feels bad at the moment because we haven’t had a great week, or two or three weeks. But it doesn’t mean you can’t win another game of football quickly.”

United have now lost three of their six matches in all competitions this season and are into their joint-worst four-game start to a Premier League campaign, according to Sky Sports’ analysis. The Brighton exit is also the second season in a row United have been knocked out of the Carabao Cup at the first hurdle.

The next test comes at Craven Cottage on Sunday, 20 September, where Carrick’s side face Fulham at 4:30pm local time before the international break.

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