Manchester United
United Legends Clash Over Michael Carrick After Immediate Winning Start
Carrick’s short run sparks division: Ferdinand defends, Keane and Neville sceptical over permanence.
A sharp divide has opened among former Manchester United figures over whether Michael Carrick should be given the job as permanent manager after an encouraging interim spell. Rio Ferdinand has publicly defended Carrick while Gary Neville and Roy Keane remain unconvinced.
Carrick’s start was notable: successive wins arrived inside his first 12 days in charge, and he needed only two games—against the best two teams in the country—to register them. That rapid impact is being measured against the recent tenure of Ruben Amorim, who took 11 months and 35 games to record consecutive league wins. Amorim’s run eventually became three straight victories as United beat Sunderland, Liverpool and Brighton & Hove Albion back-to-back-to-back in October, but he did not repeat that sequence.
Off the back of the Manchester derby, the Arsenal result left Keane unmoved. Keane remains clear that short-term form will not change his view on the permanent appointment. “I think if United win every game from now until the end of the season, I still wouldn’t be giving him the job. I just think they need a bigger, more experienced manager. Simple as that,” Keane stated on Sky Sports. “I don’t believe he’s the man to get Manchester United back winning league titles.”
Neville accepted the improvement on the pitch but argued the club has acted emotionally before. “Manchester United have acted emotionally a number of times in the last 12 years,” he said. “I honestly could not be happier with the last two weeks. The familiarity in what I’m watching feels like I’m watching my team play again properly. They played properly, with intensity. I think it’s right that Carrick keeps the job until the end of the season and then hands the baton over to [Thomas] Tuchel or [Carlo] Ancelotti, someone of that world-class ilk.”
There is context to the caution: Ole Gunnar Solskjær produced strong interim numbers but ultimately did not deliver major trophies. Ferdinand, who shared a dressing room with Carrick for longer than Neville, pushed back hard on the sceptics. “Michael Carrick’s come in, turned the collar up on his long trench coat and said: ‘Listen guys, get behind me, I’m gonna put you in a structure that’s going to actually suit the players that we have, we’re going to be hard to play against, we’re going work hard, and we’re going be a threat. And, by the way, my first two games are Man City and Arsenal,’” he said. “He’s gone and got six points and people are telling me that, no matter what Michael Carrick does, he shouldn’t get the opportunity to manage Man Utd,” the retired defender exclaimed in disbelief.
The debate now centres on whether the early momentum and internal structure Carrick has offered are sufficient to outweigh concerns about experience and long-term ambition. Carrick himself remains “not bothered” by the dispute, and the camp has also endured a revived personal jab, with his wife described as a “big mouth”.
Manchester United
Why Manchester United’s Eddie Howe Pursuit Carries a Real Financial Cost
Howe would cost United millions before wages, compensation and debt shape the decision.
Manchester United’s reported interest in Eddie Howe would not come cheaply. If the club want to move for the former Newcastle United boss, they would first need to pay around $4 million (£3 million) simply to prise him away from the terms of his agreement on Tyneside.
United have told the media, rather than issued a public statement, that Michael Carrick will remain in charge until Saturday’s Premier League match with Chelsea. What comes next is still unclear, and the thinking behind that shift has not been fully explained.
Money is a central part of the issue. Howe is understood to be among the leading candidates for the increasingly unsettled Old Trafford job and could, in theory, be available after leaving Newcastle over the summer. But that departure reportedly triggered compensation of about $4 million, as first revealed by The Guardian.
United would then also need to meet the salary expectations of Howe and his long-serving assistant Jason Tindall, described by The Athletic as “not insignificant in the eyes of United.” Carrick would also require compensation, although United limited that risk by giving the former interim manager a two-year contract rather than the three-year terms usually handed to his predecessors.
Even combined, the overall bill would still likely sit below eight figures. In the wider world of modern football, that is not an extraordinary sum. Yet in United’s current climate, it is being treated as meaningful. The club has spent the past year under intense financial pressure, with minority co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe saying in March 2025 that “the club runs out of money at Christmas” without drastic cost-cutting.
United later announced record revenues above $900 million and an operating profit of $30 million, despite no European football. Still, the club’s debt remains a major drag. Malcolm Glazer’s 2005 leveraged buyout loaded United with borrowing, and in 2025-26 alone the club spent $92.5 million, pushing total expenditure beyond $1.3 billion across two decades.
Chief executive Omar Berrada praised “the underlying strength of our business” while adding: “We will continue to take a disciplined approach to ensure our finances remain sustainable.” That discipline has already shown up in the transfer market, and now appears to extend to coaching decisions as well.
Manchester United
Carrick Kept in Place as United Delay a Decision on the Dugout
United have kept Michael Carrick for Chelsea, but the pressure, uncertainty and successor talk remain in place.
Manchester United have opted to keep Michael Carrick in charge for Saturday’s Premier League meeting with Chelsea, according to multiple reports. The move amounts to a stay of execution, but the reason for it, and how long it will last, remains uncertain.
Reports first outlined by Mike Keegan of The Overlap say the club’s senior figures have handed Carrick “the opportunity to turn things around”. What form that chance will take is not yet clear, and any fresh defeat against Chelsea would likely drag the pressure straight back onto the manager, unless there is a public endorsement from above. Even then, that kind of backing can often be the final warning rather than a safeguard.
Carrick’s presence continues to divide the mood around the club. At Old Trafford on Sunday, he received a warm response from the stands, with supporters singing his name as he waved what looked like an early goodbye. The players and executives were treated far less kindly. There were pointed chants against co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the Glazer family and technical director Jason Wilcox, while the refrain “Sell United and f— off home” rang out loudly.
That fan support for Carrick has not been ignored by those inside the club, with ESPN reporting it “did not go unnoticed”. In a toxic atmosphere, a manager who remains popular with supporters can serve as a useful buffer, although whether Carrick is comfortable being cast in that role is another matter.
The playing squad, meanwhile, is split. Bruno Fernandes has made his position clear, but there is also visible backing for Carrick. Senne Lammens offered support before the Bournemouth defeat, a stance later echoed by Harry Maguire, who said: “We’re fully behind Michael,”. “As individuals, we’re not playing well enough.”
The Guardian reports that Wilcox is driving the decision to retain Carrick, at least for now, while also leading the argument for Eddie Howe as a possible successor. Howe is expected to cost £3 million ($4 million) after agreeing future compensation with Newcastle United during his summer exit.
The calendar may yet work in United’s favour. The lack of Carabao Cup involvement gives the hierarchy five clear days after Chelsea to act, before Roma in the Champions League and then Aston Villa in the Premier League. The November international break could also open a more convenient window.
Asked why United keep finding themselves in the same mess, Carrick replied: “If I really had the answers, I wouldn’t have let it happen,” and added, “If I could do something about it and there was something that I could really control, then I would’ve tried to do everything I can to not be in this position.”
His point is hard to dispute. The wider problems at United run far beyond one manager, with the Glazers’ 2005 leveraged buyout beginning a financial slide that has left the club more than $1.5 billion in debt and owing almost $500 million in transfer fees. Ratcliffe has said the club was close to running out of cash flow before cuts were imposed. Even after a stronger summer 2025 window, the damage of years of mismanagement remains.
Manchester United
Carrick’s Manchester United future hangs in the balance as talks continue
Carrick’s future is unclear as United weigh managerial options, finances and the Chelsea fixture.
Michael Carrick’s position at Manchester United remains unsettled, with uncertainty surrounding both his immediate future and the club’s next step. Gary Neville described his former teammate as “a dead man walking” after the 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth, and reports suggested United were already identifying possible replacements. Yet by Monday morning, Carrick was still carrying out his duties as usual.
According to the Daily Mail, he was at the training ground to watch a behind-closed-doors U-21 friendly with Hull City. It is still not clear whether he will lead the first-team session on Tuesday, or whether he will still be in charge for Saturday’s Premier League meeting with Chelsea. That uncertainty reflects the broader confusion around the situation.
While Carrick watched young players such as Shea Lacey, Tyler Fletcher and Harry Amass, The Athletic reported that “crunch talks” were taking place among the key decision-makers. Those involved were thought to include minority co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, majority shareholders Joel and Avram Glazer, chief executive Omar Berrada and sporting director Jason Wilcox.
United supporters made their feelings clear on Sunday. The manager was warmly received, while the players and club executives were met with fierce criticism from the stands. Carrick, however, cannot be blamed for the 13 years of poor results since Sir Alex Ferguson departed. As Ratcliffe said in 2024: “There have been a whole series of coaches, some of which were very good. And none of them were successful, or survived for very long. The only conclusion you can draw is that the environment in which they were working didn’t work.”
That environment still appears deeply flawed, but changing one manager is easier than overhauling the wider structure. Even so, deciding who should come next has not been straightforward. Wilcox is believed to prefer former Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe, while Christopher Vivell is reported to favour Julian Nagelsmann. Antonio Conte has also been linked, with BBC Sport saying the Italian would be “keen” on the role.
Financial considerations may also be slowing the process. The Athletic reported “lingering suspicions” that cost is part of the delay. Carrick is four months into a two-year deal, and any severance would be “considerable.” Hiring a replacement would also bring extra expense, with The Guardian stating that Howe’s appointment would cost around £3 million ($4 million), plus the cost of bringing his staff with him.
For now, there are “no guarantees” Carrick will be in place for Chelsea. The fixture matters both immediately and longer term, with United needing Champions League qualification to give any future manager meaningful backing.
