Manchester United are once again looking for a manager, with Michael Carrick’s position already under scrutiny after a poor start to 2026/27.

The optimism that followed his permanent appointment has faded quickly. Carrick signed a two-year deal before United’s 3-0 win over Brighton & Hove Albion on the final day of last season, a moment that seemed to promise stability. Instead, the club has slipped back into familiar territory, with a difficult summer and a short-handed squad contributing to the current problems.

Carrick is not the only figure who has to carry some responsibility, but any successor will face the same demands that have undone so many before him. Even so, Manchester United retain enough prestige and pull to attract leading names, and several high-profile managers have been linked with the job.

One of the club’s preferred targets is Unai Emery. Before Aston Villa’s visit to Manchester, there were reports that Emery wanted to remain at Villa Park, and he has spoken about conversations aimed at building a “stronger” project. A contract extension is reportedly close, which would make any approach extremely difficult. Emery has transformed Villa into one of the division’s stronger sides, but his future appears tied to the West Midlands.

Antonio Conte remains the clearest short-term solution if the aim is immediate results. His record in England and Italy is outstanding, with success at Chelsea, Juventus, Inter Milan and Napoli. He also delivered an impressive early spell at Tottenham Hotspur, but his intense style and demanding nature are not always easy to manage. Even so, his winning record stands out.

Julian Nagelsmann offers a very different profile. Once a favourite among tactically minded observers, he made his name at Hoffenheim and RB Leipzig, reaching the Champions League semifinals with the latter. His spells at Bayern Munich and with the German national team were less convincing, and his stock has dipped further after Germany’s disappointing World Cup exit. He would bring a clear tactical identity, though some feel the concept is stronger than the reality.

Manchester United are facing another managerial change, with reports on Monday suggesting Michael Carrick is expected to be dismissed before club football resumes after the November international break.

The club’s decision comes after a damaging sequence of results. Consecutive defeats to Como and Bournemouth had already pushed Carrick into danger, and although United were later able to respond with a comeback win against Roma and then recover again to draw 4-4 with Aston Villa on Sunday, the point was not enough to shift the mood around the manager.

That result extended United’s Premier League winless run to eight matches and left them 18th in the table. It also means the club are in the relegation zone for the first time in 40 years, at least nine matches into a season, as they head into the final international break of 2026.

A final call will rest with owners Sir Jim Ratcliffe and the Glazer family, but TalkSport reported that chief executive Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox are expected to “recommend” Carrick’s removal when they meet with Ratcliffe on Tuesday.

Even the backing of supporters has not prevented the situation from deteriorating. United have won only three of their 15 matches in all competitions this season, and that record has left Carrick’s position looking increasingly untenable.

If the reports are accurate, Carrick would become the fourth permanent manager the club have dismissed since the start of the decade. The wider pattern is stark. Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Ten Hag, Amorim and Carrick have all been unable to restore United to the top of English soccer since the turn of the decade.

Should Carrick go, he would also be the seventh permanent manager of the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era to fail to deliver a Premier League title back to Old Trafford.

According to multiple reports, U.S. men’s national team manager Mauricio Pochettino is the leading candidate to take over. Pochettino signed a new four-year deal after the 2026 World Cup, but the contract includes a release clause, and TalkSport say it would not be a major obstacle for United to trigger it. The Argentine, who has long wanted a return to the Premier League, is preparing for the USMNT’s Concacaf Nations League quarterfinals against Haiti, yet could be set for a swift change if United act.

Manchester United emerged from a chaotic afternoon with a 4-4 draw against Aston Villa, recovering from two separate two-goal deficits yet still ending the day with major questions hanging over Michael Carrick before the November international break.

United’s response began in familiar fashion. Bruno Fernandes converted from the penalty spot, just as he had on Tuesday, to ignite the comeback. The home side then pushed forward with purpose and found an equaliser before the interval through Youri Tielemans, who struck against his former club on the edge of half-time.

But the pattern returned after the restart. United conceded twice in quick succession, both goals the product of loose defending that once again undermined any sense of control. John McGinn made no mistake from the penalty spot to restore Villa’s lead, before Leon Goretzka finished a scrappy set-piece move to deepen United’s problems.

At 4-2 down in stoppage time, defeat appeared inevitable. Instead, Patrick Dorgu transformed the closing stages. The substitute first supplied Joshua Zirkzee, then rose to head in the equaliser from a corner, salvaging a point that may spare Carrick in the short term while doing nothing to ease the wider unease around a side now stuck in 18th place in the Premier League table.

The opening stages set the tone. United were behind in the fourth minute, and for the fifth match in a row they found themselves two goals down. That early setback came after alarming defending, with a costly error from Senne Lammens adding to the damage.

There was little improvement after half-time, when United conceded two more poor goals inside eight minutes. Diogo Dalot’s challenge conceded the penalty and his side were then punished again by Villa’s simple finish for the fourth.

Carrick will take the blame, but the evidence on the pitch pointed just as strongly to a team repeatedly making amateur errors. If a change does come, defensive repair will be the first job awaiting any successor.