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We’re in the midst of what the kids call “spooky season” – or, for our fellow fusty old-timers out there, “autumn”. If you’ve been cosying up with a few horror flicks this month, you’ll know nothing good can come from hanging around a lake at this time of year. And so it proved for Manchester United, who endured an early Halloween nightmare on the banks of Lake Como that may have driven a stake through the Michael Carrick era. Hailed as the interim anti-Amorim not so long ago, Carrick has overseen two wins this season, against Ipswich and Sabah Baku. Como were in Serie D when Carrick won Big Cup with United as a player in 2008 – now, 18 years on, he watched the Italian upstarts dance, twirl and shimmy through the set of training cones he had sent out to represent his storied club.

Any chance the Independent Football Regulator could also force the sale of Manchester United while it is at it? – James Marriott.

Belated birthday greetings to Florent Sinama-Pongolle, a player once described (by Big Website if memory serves) as the only footballer whose surname sounds like an art-house trend – Alan Burgess.

This is an extract from our daily football email … Football Daily. To get the full version, just visit this page and follow the instructions.