Michael Carrick says it is ‘lazy’ to claim Man Utd lacked passion after embarrassing 2-0 defeat to newly promoted Hull City

Michael Carrick has dismissed suggestions that Manchester United lacked passion or motivation in their shock opening-day defeat to newly promoted Hull City, calling it “lazy” to reduce the performance to a lack of effort.United began their 2026-27 Premier League campaign with a 2-0 defeat at the MKM Stadium despite having 71.7% possession, with Hull scoring twice from set pieces in the first half. The result has led to criticism of United's attitude and desire, but Carrick insists there was more to the defeat than simply a failure to try.Carrick rejects claims United lacked desireUnited were accused of lacking passion and intensity during the defeat, but Carrick defended his players ahead of Sunday's home meeting with another newly promoted side, Ipswich Town.“Teams lose games and win games, and it's not just because you try or you don't try,” Carrick told a news conference.“There are all sorts of different reasons. Teams lose games, so there's different reasons. I don't have to give you the total reason, because we know what we're trying to improve on.“I think it's so easy and lazy to just say 'team loses a game, everything's wrong.' This is wrong, this is wrong, not trying enough, not enough passion.”Carrick's comments come after a difficult start in which United dominated possession but struggled to turn that control into enough attacking threat, while two first-half set-piece goals left them chasing the game.Carrick wants United to respondUnited now have the chance to respond immediately when Ipswich visit Old Trafford on Sunday for the club's first home match of the season.Carrick lost only two Premier League games last season, against Leeds United and Newcastle United, and United responded with victories on both occasions. The club went on to finish third in the Premier League in 2025-26, with 20 wins, 11 draws and seven defeats.For Carrick, how his players respond to the Hull setback will say more about them than the defeat itself.“I think success comes from how well you deal with setbacks in the end,” Carrick added.“In any position, certainly any sport, particularly this one, going through a season, there's going to be setbacks, sometimes a bit smaller than others.“I think it ultimately decides what type of team you're going to become. So far, we've dealt with those setbacks really well, within games, game to game.“We had one last week. No getting away from it and it's disappointing. But we look to bounce back. We had a good week, boys are refocused, learned from where we could have improved, and keep pushing forward.”Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.