Michael Carrick: Man United legend or loser?

Since Michael Carrick swapped Spurs for Man United in 2006, he's helped the Red Devils to four Premier League titles, a Champions League triumph and one League Cup trophy.

With 250 appearances for United under his belt, talkSPORT looks at whether or not he can be considered a true club great....

WHY CARRICK SHOULD BE CONSIDERED A MAN UNITED LEGEND

Carrick's debut season at United coincided with Fergie's first Premier League crown in three years, ending Chelsea's domestic stranglehold during the Mourinho era.

By his high standards, Sir Alex had overseen two disastrous campaigns prior to the midfielder's arrival, with just the 2006 League Cup trophy to boast about, when a relatively easy passage to the final kept them away from top-of-the-table opposition.

United were drawn against Barnet, West Brom, Birmingham and Blackburn, where a narrow win booked a place in the final against underdogs Wigan.

So, who else did Fergie purchase in the summer of 2006 to turn his fortunes around? No one, really; Carrick's £18.6m move was the Scot's only major piece of business aside from back up goalkeeper Tomasz Kuszczak.

In truth, it wasn't until Carrick's arrival that Fergie embarked on what is rightly considered his most successful period as manager. Four league titles and three Champions League finals in five years, despite Chelsea continuing to flex their financial muscle represented a huge achievement, when many expected the Blues to enjoy a decade of domination.

The inclusion of John O'Shea alongside Ryan Giggs in midfield for the 2006 League Cup final underlined the need to find a natural, technically gifted player capable of filling Roy Keane's boots.

Sir Alex was under even more pressure to make his next midfield signing a successful one after the embarrassment of watching Juan Sebastian Veron, Kleberson and Eric Djemba-Djemba all fail spectacularly to live up to expectations.

It was little surprise then to see him change tack and move for a player with seven seasons of Premier League experience under his belt, and that decision proved the masterstroke which enabled United to re-establish themselves as one of the world's finest teams.

WHY CARRICK SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED A MAN UNITED LEGEND

However many polls you conduct on Fergie's greatest ever signing, you'll never find Michael Carrick anywhere near the top ten, and rightly so.

A period of transition at the club enabled several new faces to arrive at Old Trafford, but only two of them developed into world class players.

In January 2006 - six months before Carrick's arrival - Fergie had secured the services of Patrice Evra and Nemanja Vidic in an attempt to bridge the gap on leaders Chelsea.

They've since been regarded as the Premier League's best players in their respective positions, while Carrick will never be among the division's elite midfielders.

This is backed up by the PFA team of the year awards: Vidic has appeared in four out of five since 2006, Evra has been selected in three, while Michael Carrick has never been considered. Even Darren Fletcher made the 2009/10 team.

You could argue that both Evra and Vidic would make it into Barcelona's team at present, despite the Catalans being considered one of the greatest club sides of all-time.

Michael Carrick, on the other hand, would struggle for a spot on Guardiola's substitutes bench. He was also fortunate that his arrival in 2006 coincided with Cristiano Ronaldo maturing into one of the world's best players, helping United embark on a period of success.

Man United's midfield has always been central to their success under Sir Alex Ferguson: Bryan Robson, Paul Ince and Roy Keane were all leaders on and off the field, while Paul Scholes has been described as the complete midfielder by Zinedine Zidane. Carrick's a top player, but can you seriously mention his name in the same breath as those players?

If Michael Carrick was anywhere near as good, there would be no talk of signing Cheick Tiote and Wesley Sneijder to keep up with leaders Man City this year.

Is Michael Carrick underrated or has just been lucky to play in great Man United teams? Have your say by commenting below...