There were loud boos from Middlesbrough fans at half time and full time in the 1-0 defeat to Watford on Saturday afternoon.
Moussa Sissoko steered the Hornets back to winning ways with a flailing Boro side leapfrogged by the Hornets, into the top 10.
Before the game, Carrick said that he understood fans’ frustration and and disappointment, but called on them for support during this tough period. But it was another defeat, meaning Middlesbrough have now lost their last four Championship games.
Boo’s at HT were bad but the ones at FT 🤯 really poor game today #Boro #UTB #MFC pic.twitter.com/BGo50M0edt
— Craig Douglas (@craigdouglas_) February 15, 2025
The full time whistle #Boro pic.twitter.com/WyL62LVKtd
— Chris (@Chris_BoroUTB) February 15, 2025
Tells you all you need to know. Carrick out. pic.twitter.com/vuiAQFo5BB
— J 🇦🇹 (@SassyUTB) February 15, 2025
Middlesbrough’s Michael Carrick, per Sky Sports:
“100 per cent (I believe I can turn it around). We have good players, we have a fantastic team, we’re having a bad spell.
“I fully believe we can get out of it. There’s a big difference between having your confidence hit and the ultimate belief.
“At the moment, we’re in it, but we have to accept that. We’ll all pull together and find a way through but it’s a tough place to be. We’ll all stick with each other.
“A lot of teams have bad spells. We don’t want to go through it but it’s part of the sport unfortunately. We don’t like it but it doesn’t mean we can’t change it.
“I’m just gutted for the players, I feel for them so much. They were trying to do the right things but when it goes against you it goes against you.
“You can see we’re fighting confidence at the minute and that’s natural, things have gone against us. We didn’t quite find the goal towards the end.”
Carrick told BBC Radio Tees:
“There’s no sugar-coating it, we’re in a tough spot at the moment. You could smell it and feel it around today, and (we need to) face up to the reality that results haven’t gone as we would like of late.
“I felt a lot for them because their attitude is top-class, honestly, they’re desperate to do the right things and in sport when things aren’t going for you and you’re not in your peak mentality, the confidence dips a little bit and it becomes more difficult to play.
“In the second half, how we reacted and tried to create pressure and opportunities, I’m proud of them for because it’s not a nice situation to deal with.
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“There’s a lot more to winning games than do you care enough or do you not care enough, and I know we care an awful lot” 🗣
A sincere Michael Carrick after his Middlesbrough side suffered a fifth defeat in six games#Boro | @EFL | @KatieShanahan3 🎙 pic.twitter.com/fnKDOI4Rr4
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) February 15, 2025
Watford’s Tom Cleverley:
“We were challenged in the last 15, 20 minutes but it was no means backs to the wall and we should have been out of sight.
“You always smell when a crowd is a little bit edgy.
“They have a quality squad and they’re demanding a lot of their players. They’re not in their best moment and we thought we could play on that.
“We created that nervousness in the stadium and smelt the blood and went for the kill.
“I still feel like we can improve how we manage the end of the game but for 70 minutes we have to give massive credit to the players, they were outstanding.”
Cleverley told BBC Three Counties:
“The average age of our whole back four was 21 so it was a big call from me on the team selection. Mattie Pollock has been outstanding for us this season but I felt on Tuesday night (v Leeds) he looked like it had caught up with him a little bit.
“It was a decision I didn’t take lightly with it being his home-town game but Kevin (Keben) came in and did fantastic.
“We were challenged in the last 15-20 minutes but I don’t want that to cover over what I thought was a fantastic performance. It was by no means backs to the wall, we really should have been out of sight going into that 75th minute.
“We didn’t manage it as well as we could and the defence was called upon, but I’m really pleased with the clean sheet.”
Michael Carrick issues message to disappointed and frustrated Middlesbrough supporters
Twitter users reacted as there were loud boos from Middlesbrough fans at half time and full time in defeat to Watford…
@Adam_Macadie: Carrick went straight down the tunnel, yeah he’s done
@_TY_97: Has to go, we’ve just made the worst team in the league form wise look good, reminded me of the wilder sack me lineup, dropped our best player, kept Ayling in, genuinely awful and. Players look lost and Iheanacho isn’t fit and a waste of a loan
@We_are_Boro: Has to be time for him to go. The club from the top have been a shambles this season. Selling your top scorer in Jan to bring in a striker who looks way off the pace is ludicrous. Not one of those players look like they want to battle.
@UTFB97: Thanks Michael, off you pop
@jamiedho: I am genuinely sad for Carrick, but it just has gone, the confidence, the connection with the fans, the form, everything. He has to go now.
@Dannykraus9: Looks beaten to me and the team. Think Danks leaving has been the biggest issue literally worst team in the league over last 12 games 🤦🏻♂️
@OAithwaite: He seems like such a nice bloke, and he genuinely makes me hope he turns it around every time I speak, but I just don’t think he has that fire in him to bollock the players and scream and shout to get them fired up for it. And that runs through the team. No grit and determination
@CorkingNeil: Has to go I’m afraid , he’s lost the crowd now , bring Steve Cooper in and let him do with Boro what he did with forest
@simonbinns: Not listened but suspect he couldn’t fault the players for effort and we looked good in moments.
@We_are_Boro: Sorry but same old, that team selection was madness. The players need to take responsibility as well but we can’t sack the lot of them unfortunately. Five passes to get the ball somewhere one pass could. We slow the pace of the game down so much we end up going backwards.
@_TY_97: Make him watch aylings performance the past few games and ask him why he continues to play him
@Smithy_MFC84: Hoping Carrick turns it around, but I’m increasingly convinced that he won’t get that chance. With that in mind, who’s out there for Gibson to approach? Personally, the more I think about it, the more I like the idea of Lee Carsley. #Boro
@pjeuk: Carrick was a brilliant hire on paper. The football played in the “Chuba” season was as exciting as it has got for 20 years. Sadly, he is now the #Boro dartboard for a host of terrible decisions for which he is not wholly responsible. However, Woodgate can get to f*** TBH
@_TY_97: Carrick subbing on all the strikers was McClaren levels of final desperation #boro
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