Michael Carrick's message to Matheus Cunha speaks volumes after Man Utd win as full-time exchange cleared up

Michael Carrick has sent a pointed message to Matheus Cunha after the Brazilian scored twice and was sent off during Manchester United's 3-2 Champions League win over Roma at Old Trafford.

United went 2-0 down against the Italian giants in yet another first half to forget, but pulled off an astonishing comeback in the second half.

Cunha scored on 83 and 86 minutes but was booked for taking his shirt off during the celebrations, before being booked again minutes later for a foul. He had an angry exchange with Carrick at full-time as he tried to re-enter the pitch - a matter which a specific part of UEFA's rulebook has cleared up - and the United head coach's comments about the Brazilian in his post-match press conference speak volumes.

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Michael Carrick addresses Matheus Cunha after Man Utd win

Speaking to reporters during his post-match press conference, Carrick praised Cunha's performance and explained the half-time tactical change that prompted his two goals.

“Matheus, yeah… Matheus can do those things. He’s got them moments," Carrick stated. "We swapped him with Bryan [Mbeumo] at half-time to try and get him into the middle of the pitch, give us a bit of a different shape. We put him in the centre of the pitch and he found himself in good positions.”

But more pointed was his message in regards to the red card - and how he is now pushing for Cunha to produce that sort of performance more often.

“Disappointed with how it finished [the red card]. But again, it just shows how much he cares and what he’s willing to do. And when he’s in that frame of mind, he’s in that mood and he plays like that, that’s why we want him here.”

Carrick also spoke highly of Shea Lacey, who came on for the last 15 minutes and assisted Cunha's winner: "The boys respect Shea a lot. He's desperate to do well and he was even defending at right-back towards the end, which I was joking with him about after the game. It just shows what he's prepared to do."

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What happened after Michael Carrick and Matheus Cunha's full-time exchange

After Carrick attempted to stop Cunha from entering the pitch at full-time, due to UEFA rules on red carded players, the Brazilian was seen being animated as he walked towards the tunnel and back towards the dressing room.

According to Fabrizio Romano, there were no issues between the pair either during or after the exchange.

"According to my sources, Michael Carrick just wanted Matheus Cunha not to get involved in any more trouble," Romano said on his YouTube channel. "He already got a red card, and he didn't want the situation to get worse. It was nothing negative, no problems between them."