VIDEO: Furious Michael Carrick didn't speak to a SINGLE Man Utd player at full-time of Newcastle loss as he claps fans before storming down tunnel

The honeymoon period for Carrick came to a grinding halt in the north east as Man Utd succumbed to a 2-1 defeat. Despite Newcastle United being reduced to 10 men for the entire second half following Jacob Ramsey's dismissal, the Red Devils were unable to find a breakthrough, eventually conceding a heartbreaking late goal to Will Osula.

As the final whistle blew, Carrick, known for his calm demeanor, was visibly incensed by his side's lack of clinical edge. He made a deliberate choice to bypass his dejected players entirely, offering no words of comfort or tactical debrief.

Instead, the United manager stood alone, directing his attention toward the away end to applaud the supporters who had made the trip. His face remained a mask of frustration as he turned his back on the team and trudged toward the dressing room, leaving his stars to reflect on a massive opportunity missed.

The interim manager's reaction demonstrated the high standards set behind the scenes. By refusing to interact with the players immediately after the whistle, Carrick sent a clear message that the numerical advantage should have earned him three points. "Yeah, we're not happy [with] the way we played the game tonight," he said, as quoted by the club's official website.

"The way the game panned out, I think we had it in our hands largely, but credit to Newcastle, I thought the way they approached the game, I thought we knew it was going to be a tough game here, but we navigated the game to be in a position where we felt we should kick on and we didn't really. So yeah, bitterly disappointed."

Despite the visible dismay shown on the pitch, Carrick was careful not to question the effort of his team when speaking to the media. 

"It was just the quality and the performance; it wasn't character or wanting to win or anything like that," he insisted. "It's easy to throw that in, just because you don't win a game of football. Credit to Newcastle, they deserve to win tonight, so it hurts me to say that, but that's how it was, and we need to get back to working and be better for the next game. There’s lessons in it, and we need to learn together as a group. We’ve got time to look at it and improve."

The defeat puts the Red Devils' position in the top three of the Premier League table in jeopardy. They now have 51 points from 29 matches, the same number as Aston Villa, who are one place below them in the table, while Chelsea are only three points behind after a thumping 4-1 win at Villa Park. With approximately 10 days off, Carrick will have time to analyse the tactical failures that occurred at St. James' Park before they take on Villa in their next fixture on March 15.