Michael Carrick has insisted that Manchester United’s players and hierarchy are speaking the hard truth to each other in blunt discussions about their troubled season.

Carrick has survived as manager after crisis talks in which chief executive Omar Berrada and sporting director Jason Wilcox decided to give him the chance to reverse their slide.

And he held clear-the-air talks with Bruno Fernandes after dropping his captain following his criticisms of United’s tactics in last week’s 4-1 defeat to Como.

Carrick has also had meetings with his underachieving squad, who are only 16th in the Premier League and 20th in the Champions League after going eight games without a win, as he revealed they have been honest, even when that is not pleasant.

“It’s pretty clear,” he said. “It’s not always rosy and nice conversations between anyone, whether that’s between me and the players, whether that’s between me, Jason or Omar or the owners. It’s the truth, it’s the hard truth at times and it’s what we need to move forward. Whatever we need to move forward, we’ll do.”

Carrick, whose side face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, said he welcomed players disagreeing with each other and with him.

He added: “We always do what we think is going to get the best out of the team. Whether that’s certain players that you speak to at certain points, that’s normal.

“That’s why if you ask for leaders in the dressing room and you want opinions on certain things, then there’s going to be times when you ask that, that’s fine. Absolutely no problem, doesn’t mean that we always agree with that, but absolutely no problem with that. And then we head off in the same direction.”