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.

Bruno Fernandes was placed 27th in the 2026 Ballon d’Or rankings on Monday night, a reminder that individual recognition can arrive at an awkward time. The Manchester United captain learned of his position the day after being left on the bench for the defeat to Bournemouth, a result that deepened an already difficult week.

The Portuguese midfielder’s season, though, was built on rare production. Across the 38-game campaign, he created 21 goals, setting a new benchmark and moving beyond the previous high of 20 assists, a mark held by Thierry Henry from 2002-03 and matched by Kevin De Bruyne in 2019-20. Fernandes was then rewarded with a clean sweep of the FWA Footballer of the Year, PFA Players’ Player of the Year and Premier League Player of the Season awards, along with a club-record fifth Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year honour.

Before the ceremony at the London Palladium, the players outside the top 10 were unveiled in reverse order. Votes came from 100 journalists, one from each of FIFA’s top 100-ranked national teams, and Fernandes ultimately finished behind the leading names in the count. He was only above William Saliba and Sadio Mané, who shared 29th, and Julián Quiñones in 28th place. Declan Rice, who had lost out to Fernandes in the domestic awards, ended up 13 places higher.

This was Fernandes’s second Ballon d’Or nomination, following his inclusion in 2021. That year he finished equal 21st, just ahead of Harry Kane and Luka Modrić among others.

His profile has changed since then. In 2020-21, Fernandes was scoring with far greater regularity, finishing with 28 goals in all competitions as Manchester United came second in the Premier League. Even so, nomination alone remains significant, with fewer than 0.1% of professional players ever reaching that stage.

Manchester United’s history in the award is well established. Denis Law was the club’s first winner in 1964 after scoring 46 times in 1963-64, while Bobby Charlton claimed the prize in 1966 after playing a major role in England’s World Cup triumph.

Manchester United’s latest home defeat to Bournemouth should, on paper, have produced anger aimed squarely at Michael Carrick. Instead, parts of the Old Trafford crowd chose a different response after watching their side lose for an eighth straight match.

As the manager was still on the touchline, supporters sang: “It’s Carrick, you know,” to the tune of Pilot’s 1974 song Magic. They followed it with: “It’s hard to believe it’s not Scholes.”

But the mood shifted sharply once Carrick headed down the tunnel. Boos rang out, quickly joined by explicit chants that underlined the depth of frustration around the club.

The reaction reflected a wider anger that has existed for years. Manchester United fans have been protesting against the ownership since the Glazer family took control on June 28, 2005. Kobbie Mainoo, by then, was only two months old.

Supporters have long objected not simply to the presence of the Glazers, but to the way the takeover was financed. The debt-laden structure left the club carrying heavy interest payments, while the owners remained protected in the boardroom. For many fans, the message has stayed the same: “Sell United and f— off home.”

That anger briefly eased when Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS arrived with a takeover offer in December 2023. Ratcliffe took control of day-to-day sporting operations, initially buying 25% of the shares before increasing that to 28.9%. Yet the Glazers remain involved, and the frustration has only deepened as results have failed to improve.

INEOS has made key appointments, including Omar Berrada as CEO and Jason Wilcox as technical director, but the club is now approaching a fourth permanent manager since their arrival less than three years ago. The transfer windows have also fallen short of expectations, leaving the squad short of what is needed on the pitch.

Carrick can only influence preparation and tactics. Once the match begins, responsibility shifts to the players, and that is where supporters have seen the biggest failings. Bruno Fernandes, benched for the Bournemouth game after speaking out against Carrick’s tactics, is among the senior names who have disappointed this season.

The team have looked sluggish, often outran, and short of the effort supporters demand. That is why a banner calling for the standards of Eric Cantona, Roy Keane and Bryan Robson was brought back out against Bournemouth.

Carrick is not beyond criticism, but many fans believe the deeper problem lies above him, not on the touchline.