According to a new report, Manchester United manager Michael Carrick appears to have rejected the possibility of the Red Devils traveling to the Middle East to play a lucrative mid-season friendly. The Red Devils had held preliminary talks about plans to travel, after the previous manager, Ruben Amorim, had expressed his willingness to do so, but the plans have been "put on the back burner."

According to The Times, United had provisional plans to travel to the Middle East to play a friendly that could have been very lucrative. Earlier this season, Amorim stated that the club "had to do it."

He argued the club had no other choice due to not qualifying for European competition.

He said: "We have to do it. And you know, we knew when we stayed out of Europe, we had a lot of things to do. We have our fans, we have the budget, and we have to make up for a lot of things. So we have to do it. We will. We want to be with our fans all over the world. If you have to do it, you have to find a way to do it."

Carrick and United appear to have backed away from their plans, as the club's interest in this lucrative match "has waned." Although negotiations could resume after the international break, United had signaled this week as the ideal time for the proposed exhibition match, which could have generated millions in revenue. United will face West Ham on Tuesday, before a 13-day break ahead of their next match against Everton, as they have been eliminated from the FA Cup.

The Kuwait Football Association had claimed it had been asked to organize a friendly match for United, but that has not been verified.

Kuwait Football Association president Ahmad Al-Yousef said, "I cannot organize an event for Manchester United's arrival in 17 or 18 days."

Carrick also had the option of taking his players to a training camp in a warm-weather location, but has decided against it and is instead likely to grant his squad four days off.

United has won its last four league matches under Carrick and now sits in fourth place, one point ahead of Chelsea in fifth, and 12 points behind leader Arsenal. Carrick believes the extra training time provided by their absence from Europe and their elimination from the FA Cup has helped them become more solid defensively, as United has kept a clean sheet in its last four matches.

"Without a doubt, it's very satisfying, and it's easier to win matches without having to score so many goals every week. We seem to be a team capable of causing many problems, creating chances, and scoring goals, so we are definitely achieving the right balance," he stated.

"There are still things to improve; it's definitely something we have focused on, trying to be better as a team collectively when we don't have the ball, but in three or four weeks, you can't fix everything and suddenly look perfect."

He added: "You have to enjoy the excitement of winning, don't you? That's what we're here for," said the 44-year-old manager. "You have to manage the highs and enjoy the feeling of winning a match."

United will be without Matthijs de Ligt, Mason Mount, and Patrick Dorgu for its clash with West Ham.

Carrick added, "Mason will be back for the Everton match. It seems Matthijs has been out a long time, so we'll see how he progresses. It's positive, he's on the right track, but Mason is a bit closer than him."

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