Michael Carrick hits back at 'unfair criticism' of his Middlesbrough players
MICHAEL CARRICK has hit back at suggestions that his Middlesbrough players lack “passion” or “leadership”, claiming such criticisms are “easy to make” when the side is underperforming.
Saturday’s 2-1 defeat at Portsmouth means Boro have won just one of their last seven matches in all competitions ahead of this evening’s home game with West Brom.
The Teessiders claimed a first-half lead at Fratton Park, but not for the first time this season, they then allowed a positive position to be frittered away.
Boro’s second-half showing lacked control and physical dominance, leading to suggestions that a soft underbelly was a reflection of both a lack of passion and a failure to sufficiently care about the outcome of the game.
Carrick feels that is an unfair accusation to level at his players, insisting their post-match dejection and subsequent commitment to training highlights just how deeply they are affected by both performance levels and results.
“I just think that’s quite an easy thing to say,” said the Boro boss. “It’s easy to talk about leaders and passion, but when the team hasn’t won, I just think that’s an easy thing to fall back on.
“I’ve heard it so many times, ‘Oh, you’re not passionate enough’ or ‘Oh, there’s not enough leaders’. It’s quite an easy thing to say.
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“Sometimes, there can be little a bit in that. But I can assure you, when it comes to passion and commitment, you really can’t fault this group of players.
“I saw the boys after the game at the weekend, and I’ve seen how hard they’ve been working in training to get ready for the next game. I can assure you, it’s not that. That is not the issue at all – if it was, I’d say it and address it. But it’s certainly not that.”
Similarly, Carrick was keen to brush off the suggestion that his squad is too callow to achieve promotion.
Yes, there are a number of youngsters within Boro’s first-team ranks. But Carrick does not view that as a negative, insisting all of his players are encouraged to develop and display leadership traits.
“People can talk about the age of the squad or the make-up of the group, but it depends on the personality of the players and the character of the people in question,” he said. “You can bring certain things out a bit more, whether that’s technically or in terms of the personality, but a lot of the time, you are what you are as well.
“You can improve on certain things, but I just think it’s sometimes a bit too easy to point fingers and say this or that.
“We do ask the boys to have that presence and show that bit of personality as much as they can, in their own way. We want them to express themselves, but I just think sometimes, when you’ve played well and won, everyone’s a leader, everyone cares and everyone’s trying their best.
“But then if you draw or get beat, all of that can be questioned. That’s football, I guess. It’s why we love it, everyone can have their say and have an opinion on things.”
