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As Michael Carrick knows from direct experience, Manchester United are no strangers to early-season defensive problems away to Everton. Fourteen years before Ainsley Maitland-Niles struck a 96th-minute equaliser at Hill Dickinson Stadium, Rio Ferdinand had joined a growing list of injured centre-backs, midfielder Carrick was forced to deputise in defence and was overpowered by his future teammate Marouane Fellaini, who scored the winner for David Moyes’ Everton.

When Carrick and Moyes, and United and Everton, met again in Sunday’s 2-2 draw, there was another form of continuity. United kept up their record of conceding two goals in every game this season. That would hardly be ideal regardless of the schedule, but they have faced Hull and Ipswich, both of whom were in the Championship last year, as well as Everton, who outscored only five teams in the Premier League last season. In the corresponding fixtures last season – replacing those sides with the teams promoted automatically in second place and through the play-offs – United conceded only twice in total.

Of course, that may still amount to a small sample size. Carrick argued that Everton’s goals, scored by Tyrique George and Maitland-Niles, were both outstanding efforts, and not necessarily something opponents can rely upon. “There's been two strikes from distance, two really good strikes from their point of view, so sometimes they fly in the top corner and more often than not they probably don't,” he said.

Ainsley Maitland-Niles’s superb goal rescued a point for Everton against Manchester United.

United have now let in two goals in every Premier League match so far this season.

Two weeks earlier, Carrick had pointed out that Hull scored twice from set-pieces, something that had not been an issue after his return to Old Trafford in January. Again, it may not yet be a definite trend. Each match has unfolded differently. Ipswich’s first goal, scored by Leif Davis, came after Luke Shaw was first nutmegged and then beaten for pace by Abdul Fatawu. Their second came from an individual mistake by Lisandro Martinez.

Yet the broader pattern is troubling. “The mentality is there, I think, [but] there's obviously things we need to get better at as a team,” Carrick said. “Obviously we can't ignore it, we need to concede less goals to give us a better chance of winning games.”

One obvious starting point would be to allow fewer shots, which in turn might reduce the likelihood of spectacular goals. Everton had 18 efforts, with six on target. So far, only four Premier League teams have faced more shots on target than United. In fact, it could be argued that the only member of their defence to have begun the season well is goalkeeper Senne Lammens, meaning their defensive record might easily have been even worse.

Manchester United’s defence has struggled in the early part of the season.

Senne Lammens has delivered some reasonably impressive displays in the United goal.

And while United were vulnerable defensively at the beginning of last season, that could often be pinned on Altay Bayindir. Now the goalkeeping problem appears to have been sorted, but the back four is emerging as the issue. United had hoped that would not be the case, at least not until next summer.

It is an area that has been overlooked in recruitment. Last year the focus was on the forward line, with three attacking additions, and this time attention shifted to midfield, where three more signings arrived. There was a broad feeling that United needed a left-back, ideally a long-term successor to Shaw, but their budget did not allow for that. To be fair to Shaw, he was excellent both going forward and defensively at Everton.

One of the more striking details is that, against both Ipswich and Everton, Carrick selected the same back four that had started the opening match of Erik ten Hag’s reign in 2022: a unit assembled by four different managers – Louis van Gaal, Ten Hag, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Jose Mourinho – in Shaw, Martinez, Harry Maguire and Diogo Dalot.

The opening three games could encourage the view that the defence has grown old over the summer. Perhaps it simply means they are not yet fully sharp, but they have looked slow, and that is before the added strain of midweek fixtures has even arrived.

United have conceded twice in every game so far this season.

Matthijs de Ligt has not played for United since November because of a back injury.

For different reasons, United have been left relying on the old guard. Matthijs de Ligt was arguably their best player at the start of last season, but a back injury has kept him out since November. Leny Yoro was meant to represent the future, but he has not lived up to either his reputation or the size of his transfer fee. Carrick does not appear fully convinced, instead seeking reassurance in the experience of 33-year-old Maguire. The manager also seems to view Patrick Dorgu more as a winger than a full-back. At right-back, Noussair Mazraoui was dropped after the defeat at Hull, although Dalot has not performed any better.

There are also questions over why United retreated at Everton when defending deep was not their strongest route to protecting a lead. The ageing back four could reasonably feel they are not getting enough protection from a midfield that includes three new signings. Perhaps that will improve when Carlos Baleba, the most defensively minded of the trio, is fit. Against Hull, it felt as though they missed Casemiro’s aerial strength when defending set-pieces.

But even when they have won, Carrick’s side have not looked secure. He has now taken charge of 20 league games, and United have conceded two goals in 10 of them. So while Maitland-Niles’ brilliant strike may prove to be a one-off, the defensive record certainly is not. That is the warning sign for United.