Carrick bears responsibility for Manchester United's exit, and Messi scores his 100th goal with Inter Miami

Michael Carrick, the coach of Manchester United, acknowledged his responsibility for his team's sudden exit from the English League Cup, after losing to Brighton 2-3 pm, on Wednesday, in the third round, stressing that the team was required to react quickly after the players left Old Trafford amid booing from the fans.

United started on their way to achieving a comfortable victory after Shea Lacey opened the scoring in his first start with the first team, before Mason Mount added the second goal in the tenth minute. But Brighton rose up and overturned a two-goal deficit into a deserved victory, after Charalambos Kostoulas, Pascal Gross and Maxime De Kuiper scored three goals, making Brighton the first team since 1976 to succeed in converting a two-goal deficit into a victory at Old Trafford.

British news agency PA Media quoted Carrick as saying: “We must bear full responsibility. We cannot advance in the game and then allow it to end this way. Some things have accumulated in recent weeks, and this has begun to create a state of frustration and disappointment, but we have to deal with them and change the situation.”

He added: “We have a match against Fulham next Sunday, and we have to show the required reaction. This is the most important thing now. Everything happened within a short period, perhaps two or three weeks, during which we witnessed a lot of frustration and disappointment. We have to turn things around and get back to achieving victories.”

United will face Fulham before a three-week international break, which makes the match important for the team in trying to regain its balance after a faltering start to the season.

Carrick denied feeling pressure due to the increasing talk about his future, and said: “I do not feel pressure, and this does not bother me at all. “I understand what is happening outside the club and how things are going, but what matters to me is winning matches and having a good atmosphere within the team, and feeling that we are moving in the right direction.”

For his part, Brighton coach Fabian Horzler said that belief in his team’s ability to come back was a key factor in the victory, adding: “When you come to a place like this and face a team like United, you need to believe in your ability to achieve something. But showing this belief after falling behind by two goals reflects true character, and we stuck together until the end.”

Lionel Messi scored his 100th goal for Inter Miami, leading the American team to a 2-0 victory over Mexico's Cruz Azul, and winning the Champions Cup at Miami Freedom Park yesterday (Wednesday).

Messi's goal came in the 24th minute of the match in his 115th appearance with Inter Miami. Casemiro added the second goal in the final minutes to confirm his team's victory.

Since joining Inter Miami in 2023, Messi, the former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain star, has continued to make a difference, contributing to leading the team to win 4 titles so far.

The 39-year-old Argentine player, the all-time top scorer for his country with 125 goals, announced his retirement from international football last month, after a career during which he won the 2022 World Cup.

Messi is scheduled to bid farewell to the fans of the Argentine national team in a friendly match against Benin on October 6.