Red View: Carrick calm, Arsenal away days video, Mickey Thomas and more

CARRICK EMBRACES FIXTURE LIST Michael Carrick says fixture congestion will inspire and not hinder United as Sir Alex Ferguson's side chase a Premier League and European Cup double. After a dominant 2-0 win over Schalke in the Champions League semi-final first leg, the Reds are back in action with a run of three blockbuster clashes in just seven days against Arsenal, the Germans and Chelsea. Carrick feels United are up to the challenge: "We thrive on it. We want to be playing in the big games and they're coming thick and fast now. But, at the end of the day, if you want to be successful then it's the name of the game - that is what we are here for. Every game is such a big one now so it's pretty easy to switch our focus and keep motivated. We just need to recover quickly and prepare for the next game which we are all looking forward to." The Reds have performed well at the Emirates since the Gunners moved there in 2006, not least in the last two visits - in the league and Champions League - which both yielded 3-1 victories. Carrick is hoping to continue that run. "We are in a good position in the league, we have got the points in hand and we will go there to play like we would play regardless of what is at stake. We have done alright in the last year or two so hopefully we can carry that on. You can't draw on them too much because it is a different game but we have confidence that we have been down there before and won. Hopefully we can take that into the game and win again." More: Sir Alex: There's drama ahead | Modric is boss' top man ARSENAL v UNITED - THE KEY BATTLES Former United midfielder Mickey Thomas takes a look at three duels that could go a long way in deciding Sunday's clash. Arsenal versus United is always an exciting fixture in the calendar, particularly when the result could determine the title race. But the pressure is on the Gunners to win this game otherwise they are out of the hunt. Arsene Wenger's side have been disappointing of late so they'll be really fired up and desperate to win. The Emirates is a great place to play football though and we have a good record there, so hopefully we can get another positive result. Van Persie v Vidic Arsenal's Dutch striker is in fantastic form and has scored lots of goals in the league -  their season might have been different had he not been injured for so long. He'll be facing the  best centre-half in the country on Sunday though. Vidic, in my opinion, is the complete defender and if this is a physical contest, there will only be one winner. Fabregas v Carrick The Arsenal captain has not performed to his usual high standards this season but remains a quality player who cannot be taken lightly. Michael Carrick has been excellent in recent weeks so this battle is very intriguing. Big games are usually won and lost in midfield so this head-to-head will go a long way to deciding the game. Koscielny v Rooney  Wayne has a good record at the Emirates Stadium, where he scored one of the finest counter-attacking goals I've ever seen last season. I'm extremely confident he has the better of Koscielny and the rest of the Arsenal defence, which has looked a bit disorganised this season - particularly from set-pieces.  More: Berbatov back for Arsenal | Arsenal v United BLOG: CREDIT AT CRUNCH TIME ManUtd.com's Adam Marshall hopes some of the media will be ready to eat humble pie . It's easy to grow a little frustrated with the lack of wider appreciation for United's season thus far. Credit must surely be applied soon for a team written off as a shadow of Sir Alex Ferguson's illustrious sides of the past. Two huge tests await on the domestic front which will go a long way to deciding if a record 19th title is safely secured ahead of what everybody hopes will be a Champions League final to savour at Wembley, providing Schalke are unable to pull off an amazing comeback at Old Trafford. So when do the plaudits start arriving for a defence that hasn't conceded away from home in Europe all season? Or a strikeforce containing the rejuvenated Wayne Rooney and the revelation that is Javier Hernandez? And what about the midfield? The area that would cost United dearly this term, according to most pundits supposedly in the know, and yet it continues to dominate much-vaunted opponents. United controlled the match against Schalke with a disciplined, high-tempo team performance that proved far too much for the Bundesliga side to handle. Any praise for Sir Alex's charges was tempered by criticism of the home team for not being up to scratch. I'm sure at one point I heard Liverpool legend Graeme Souness make this astonishing statement on Sky Sports: "Schalke didn't want to win." Yet Schalke went into the tie with a 100 percent home record in the Champions League, had beaten Inter Milan convincingly home and away and, of course, gone further in the competition than England's other three representatives. Never mind, they were written off as unworthy opponents because of United's dominance - as though reaching finals at this rarefied level is sometimes guaranteed. If Barcelona had destroyed Schalke in similar fashion, the tributes would have flowed for their version of the beautiful game. United? We're apparently scraping through by sheer will alone, topping the league only because everybody else is so poor. Surely that doesn't explain why teams in Europe can't beat us either? The Reds' stars obviously, and quite rightly, play down their achievements, talking only of finishing the job at home and not looking further ahead than the next fixture. But if the leaders can produce similar performances in the three big games to come in the next week then the time will come for many observers to eat humble pie and acclaim the manager's latest team. It won't be Sir Alex's greatest achievement as some suggest nor validification of any perceived lack of quality elsewhere. It will be the realisation that this squad has been good enough all along and many were wrong to doubt it. More: Red Voices podcast | Rafael's firsts   This email was sent by:Manchester United Sir Matt Busby Way Old Trafford, Manchester, M16 0RA, United Kingdom. This email is designed to be viewed in HTML email clients - if you cannot see the images above, please open an HTML-compatible email account and then register the new address with ManUtd.com. 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