Sunderland 0-0 Manchester United: Michael Carrick's men move closer to securing third-placed finish
Report and free match highlights as Senne Lammens shows his worth to Manchester United in 0-0 draw with Sunderland
Saturday 9 May 2026 18:29, UK
Manchester United missed the chance to secure third place in the Premier League as they were held 0-0 at Sunderland.
Sunderland will feel as if they deserved more on the balance of play as Noah Sadiki and Brian Bobbey both were thwarted by some excellent goalkeeping by Senne Lammens.
Despite the underwhelming performance, United could have nicked it in during added time when Matheus Cunha was denied by Robin Roefs - an effort which was their first shot on target of the game.
The result leaves United six points ahead of Liverpool, who are fourth, and they require just one more point from their final two games to be sure of third.
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United made five switches from the team who beat Liverpool, which included starts for Joshua Zirkzee and Mason Mount with Casemiro ruled out with a minor injury issue.
Sunderland enjoyed the bulk of the possession and a neat exchange of one-touch passes in midfield involving Enzo Le Fee ended with a ball into Sadiki, who forced Lammens into a low save.
The Black Cats almost broke the deadlock when Le Fee threaded another pass into Brobbey and the striker had his effort pushed away by the visiting goalkeeper.
Another brilliant chance saw Brobbey flick the ball into Lutsharel Geertruida but the defender's effort bounced off the post.
A late surge from the visitors saw Bruno Fernandes' low strike deflected behind for a corner and Cunha's powerful effort saved by Robin Roefs.
In the final seconds, Fernandes hit a cross into Bryan Mbuemo on the edge of the area and the winger's attempt was blocked as the points were shared.
Carrick: We'll take a point
Michael Carrick speaking to Sky Sports:
"We take the point, I think a clean sheet is always good to get. I think we've scored a lot of goals this season and we've created a lot of chances. It's just one of those games, you know, it's a tough game. It was a decent enough point and we nearly won it in the end.
"There were some changes today and I thought, as a collective, the spirit and the attitude of the boys was really good.
"It's easy to fizzle out after you've had a spell and you come towards the end of the season and you're really focused on finishing the season strong. Was it going to be the perfect game? I think we probably went into it not expecting the perfect game and understanding the situation and the changes.
"It is what it is. It's something that we need to overthink and certainly not to be negative about because there's not a lot to be negative about. We understand that we can be a little bit better than we were at certain times today.
"We need to keep improving, keep working. Take the positives, play with the confidence.
"It's a tough league, it's a tough league to get results. Today, to take a point from here is okay."
Merse: It wasn't a good result or performance
Sky Sports' Paul Merson reacting to Carrick's post-match comments:
"He didn't sound right. When you're manager of Man Utd you have to come out and say 'we expect to come here and win'.
"It's like it was a good result today. It wasn't a good result or performance.
"It's worrying for next season. They will be in the Champions League and their squad looks shallow. Mount playing in centre midfield with Mainoo, Zirkzee up front.
"They need to invest in players if they want to be in top four again next season."
Xhaka urges humility after Man Utd draw
Sunderland midfielder Granit Xhaka speaking to Sky Sports:
"Nearly a perfect game. We created so many chances against a really good team. If you have so many chances you need to score one, for sure. We had good momentum. This is part of the process, to keep believing in ourselves.
"I give you a very easy answer: stay humble. We just got promoted. The demands are very high. We know where to improve, stay humble, and stay kind, because we're getting there.
"We aren't thinking about Europe. We have two games left and want to finish as good as possible. Let's get points and see where we are in the end. We want to finish with a good feeling. If you want to survive in the Premier League you need that. We can be proud of ourselves."
