Less than three weeks ago, Manchester City were licking their lips at the prospect of the first derby of the season next Wednesday. Now they are biting their nails. At the same time as they have suffered three successive defeats for the first time under Roberto Mancini, United have reeled of five successive wins. Another victory against Wolves is expected tomorrow, which would leave the Red Devils to drive across town brimming with confidence. Yet Carrick is experienced enough to know Sir Alex Ferguson will keep feet firmly planted on the ground. "We know the bigger picture. When things are going well we don't get carried away and when things aren't going so well we don't get despondent either because we know things will turn," said Carrick. "We are on a good run at the moment. We are happy with the way things are going and are now bouncing into games. "The derby is there, but in another way, it still seems a long way off. "We cannot afford to get ahead of ourselves because we have Wolves to play on Saturday and they beat City last week so that is going to be tough enough." Five points adrift of leaders Chelsea, United have little room for manoeuvre given the points they meekly tossed away in the opening weeks of the campaign. Late goals at Fulham and Everton, plus the loss of a two-goal lead at home to West Brom may eventually prove costly, with Ferguson sweating on the fitness of Nani and Darren Fletcher for the encounter with Mick McCarthy's men. However, as they face opposition who were overcome in the Carling Cup at Old Trafford last week, the United camp is targeting an extension of an unbeaten run that extends to an impressive 23 games. "We are still frustrated about all those silly points we gave away but we are unbeaten and that gives us a lot of confidence," said Carrick. "It gives us confidence to know we are tough to beat again. "We have always been able to score goals. Now is the time to start getting the results we want."
