Michael Carrick has defended Diogo Dalot after the Manchester United defender appeared to be ironically cheered by fans when he was substituted during the 4-4 draw with Aston Villa on Sunday.
Dalot gave away a penalty as Villa twice led by two goals at 2-0 and 4-2 up before United sealed a dramatic fightback by scoring twice in stoppage time.
The Portuguese international was substituted in the 66th minute and when his number went up there were initially loud cheers, followed by boos.
“Diogo, he gives absolutely everything,” Carrick said when asked about the fans’ reaction.
“He’s played in different positions, he’s played left-back, he’s played really well at times. He gives a penalty away today, that’s, you know, he knows that.
“Maybe he can do a little bit better, all right, that’s part of it, he’s made a mistake, but he cares an awful lot and he’s giving everything.”
As well as conceding a penalty against Villa from which John McGinn scored, Dalot was also at fault for Roma’s first goal in United’s 3-2 win in the Champions League on Tuesday.
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And despite some mixed performances this season, Carrick has consistently picked the 27-year-old, who was part of the team’s leadership group under former boss Ruben Amorim.
“I like what he brings to the team, I like what he brings to the group, I like what he brings to the whole environment and the culture that we’ve got,” Carrick said.
“Picking a team and who plays the next game, that’s a whole different decision, but it’s a whole different game that we’ve got to look forward to now.”
