Carrick has not given up on finishing in top four

Manchester United stumbled to a ninth home draw of a frustrating Premier League campaign on Tuesday, but Michael Carrick has not given up on a top-four finish.

With Saturday’s goalless stalemate against West Brom fresh in the mind, things looked set to get even worse at Old Trafford as Jose Mourinho’s men trailed Everton 1-0 through Phil Jagielka’s hooked first-half effort.

United struggled to find an equaliser, but in stoppage time Zlatan Ibrahimovic converted a penalty to earn a 1-1 draw.

The overriding emotion was relief after the Red Devils extended their unbeaten Premier League run to a 20th match – albeit half of those have been draws, meaning they face a fight for the top four.

Europa League glory offers another route to the Champions League, but Carrick has not given up on securing a return to European football’s top table through the league.

“I see it as two points dropped,” Carrick said. “It’s not easy when it’s not going well, especially after Saturday, but the boys kept trying.

“They kept going and kept going and obviously gave us that goal to give us the point. It’s a point but it’s nowhere near enough.

“You can’t give up on anything and results can go funny ways sometimes.

“We’re obviously giving ourselves the tougher task, but we’re not giving up,” he said.

Aiming for top four: Michael Carrick.