The Michael Carrick era might be drawing to a close at Manchester United as the Red Devils were hapless in a chastening defeat at the hands of Como

Manchester United are in serious trouble. Michael Carrick’s side are already on a winless run, look devoid of confidence and now, on Wednesday evening, appear to have downed tools altogether.

In the latest leg of their ill-fated European return, the Red Devils had jetted to the nouveau-riche Como 1907 - and were outclassed by the Champions League debutants, who battered Carrick's underperforming stars in a 4-1 drubbing.

And as torrential rain battered the banks of the famous Italian lake, Carrick stood on the touchline watching the storm clouds gather as the hopes of keeping the United job looking increasingly bleak.

Carrick splashed out on a midfield rebuild over the summer, signing Carlos Baleba, Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos as they hoped to spearhead a title charge - the latter pair started in Northern Italy.

And what followed was nothing short of a disgrace as they resembled mannequins - allowing the Como midfield to waltz past them with each and every attack. United's press was half-hearted at best, as the hosts to slice through them with embarrassing ease.

And while Tielemans and Santos were being bypassed, Nico Paz gave Bruno Fernandes a footballing lesson so brutal that the United star was hooked for Joshua Zirkzee - who, in all fairness, added some respectability to the score-line.

Carrick knew something had to change at half-time - and it led to his biggest mistake of the match. Carrick's response was to introduce the third piece of the midfield puzzle, Baleba, and swapping to a back three.

It opened the floodgates.

Nico Paz turned provider, after scoring in the second minute, before notching his second, before Matthijs de Ligt hit the self destruct button and kept Como's attackers onside - allowing Jacobo Ramon to power his header home.

Carrick, ahead of the game, said he had no fear over his job - but such a humbling defeat should have him looking in a mirror. It simply can't continue like this for United.

It's not just once a season, or even once a month, it's every three days at this point. We're approaching two months since United's last competitive win, their opening Champions League success against minnows Sabah.

In the resulting seven matches, Carrick's side have been beaten four times while being held on three occasions. If it's not the end, it feels like the beginning of it, and that shot of Carrick in the Italian rain might prove to be the defining image of his United legacy.

Carrick looks set to be the latest to fail to return the Red Devils to their former glory - but it leaves the question of where do INEOS and the Glazer family go from here.