Michael Carrick may be writing the closing chapter of the book that tells the story of his time at Manchester United. Yet again, he may still be around next season to pen an epilogue.
At the moment, it remains unclear whether Jose Mourinho will offer the Red Devils vice-captain another season to bolt on to this one. Or will the curtain come down and the pen he put to paper on a one-year extension to his current deal in the summer be the conclusion of his spell at the Theatre of Dreams.
Only Mourinho knows. Only Carrick knows if he will accept any offer, for that matter. What we do know for sure is that Carrick has been a fantastic servant for the club and has flourished, mostly, during his 11 campaigns as a United schemer.
Mourinho took time out to talk about the situation following United’s 1-1 Premier League draw with Arsenal at Old Trafford on Saturday.
After expressing joy when Juan Mata handed the home side the lead and then exuding agony when Olivier Giroud scored a late lever for the Gunners, the Portuguese coach said of Carrick:
“Michael is 35 years old. With such an intense game he was having some cramps in the last period, which is normal. It is very sad to know that time flies for every one of us”.
“He is such a fantastic player and it is a pity, I always loved him, but instead of being his manager when he was 25 I am his manager when he is 35″.
“We have a good understanding. We know when he can play. We know when he is ready and when he needs a rest. I am still having Michael Carrick and probably for one more season. That’s life”.
The message from those observations on Carrick’s future is indecipherable, to this correspondent at least. It doesn’t alter the fact that Carrick is a credit to himself and a fabulous representative of United.