Despite last week's late defeat to ten man Newcastle United at St James' Park, Michael Carrick has had a very impressive short tenure at Manchester United on the whole. 

The likes of Kobbie Mainoo are back in the team, Bruno Fernandes is playing further forward, and in general there feels to be a good atmosphere around Old Trafford for the first time in a while.

It's not just on matchday where Carrick has impressed. According to The Athletic, people close to the dressing room have praised the 44-year old's training methods - with players benefiting from shorter, more intense sessions. 

They also report that the calibre of his backroom staff, in particular Steve Holland, has also been praised. On the contrary, Ruben Amorim relying on coaches with relative inexperience was sometimes questioned. 

An interesting report, to say the least - and it marries up with the idea that the players are much happier with Carrick and his ways than they were with his predecessor. 

However, there is an issue here. Although there are some games where United have rallied, they can often look pretty gassed by the hour mark.

For example, in the defeat at Newcastle last week, they were overran in the second half despite having a man advantage over their hosts. So, perhaps the training sessions may be too intense? 

You can understand why Carrick thinks it's a good idea. With just one game a week - and a record low 40 game season - a certain level of intensity is needed in training to make sure that the players are as sharp as their opponents who are playing twice, sometimes three times a week. 

Well, we will find out during the run-in. This is really the time when the gaffer earns his money. We will see whether the methods are effective. One game a week whilst Aston Villa compete in the Europa League, one game a week whilst Chelsea and Liverpool compete in the Champions League.

Which is handy because this Sunday, at 14:00 GMT, United will host Villa in an absolutely huge game. Whilst Carrick's side have the week off on the training ground, the visitors are playing in France against Lille less than 72 hours before the game. This could have huge benefits.

Plus, there will be the second leg for them to focus on afterwards. Based on Unai Emery's history as a manager, there is a good chance he puts more priority into the Europa League than domestic matters, but let's see.

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