Manchester United have suffered their worst start to a season for 40 years under Michael Carrick

Morgan Rogers spoke of the impact Michael Carrick had on his meteoric rise in the game, before piling more pressure on the Manchester United boss.

Carrick managed Rogers during his short spell at Middlesbrough in 2023. The forward was signed for a little over £1m, leaving for Aston Villa just six months later in a deal worth £16m, plus a world-record sell-on fee that Boro further profited from this summer after his switch to Chelsea.

That meant Rogers went up against his former Boro boss on Saturday, with Carrick under pressure and clinging to his job at Old Trafford after Manchester United’s worst start to a season for 40 years.

Despite an improved second half from Carrick’s side, Rogers ran through unopposed in the second half to open the scoring as Chelsea won 2-0.

It leaves Carrick in the brink, though he expects to remain in charge of Manchester United for the next two home games against Roma and Aston Villa before a decision is likely to be made on his future during the international break.

Ahead of Saturday’s game, however, Rogers echoed similar sentiments to Hayden Hackney recently, on how important the ex-Boro boss was to their individual development.

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Rogers told Prime Sport: “I moved to Middlesbrough in 2023. I was in need of direction. The way he sees the game is so in-depth.

“It’s so detailed and you just automatically know straight away that he’s been at this level and he knows what it takes.

“So, as a young player, being under him, playing for him and listening to him, he was the perfect person.

“I don’t know where I’d be without him. I think I might have lost my way. I was in a tough place and a tough part of my career, and to have that calming individual was massive for me.

“He had composure in even the toughest of situations, to deal with people, to deal with egos and to deal with personalities.

“He’s got all that, but don’t get me wrong, he’s very tactical too. He’s very smart, very intelligent and knows how to get the best out of players, which I think is just as important as a manager.”