Michael Carrick has led Manchester United to nine wins in 13 games since taking over as caretaker manager, but will be back in Europe next season to juggle more games.
Michael Carrick in pole position to become permanent manager of Manchester United (Image: Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images)
Steve Bruce made 417 appearances for Manchester United, all of them for managerial mentor Sir Alex Ferguson. He became the first man to lift the Premier League trophy after captaining United for the first time in the 1992-93 season.
After retiring, he began a 27-year career in management, managing 1,094 games for 12 clubs. He believes his own life in the dugout, barring international work, is over, but hopes another former United player can use his managerial skills to get the Red Devils back to the top.
“I really hope Michael Carrick gets the Manchester United job,” Bruce said during an appearance on Overlap and Betfair’s Stick to Cricket show. “He certainly got pole position. He got the club because he’s been there and played. So I hope he gets that club permanently next season.”
Carrick ended up playing more games for United than Bruce, making a total of 464 appearances before leaving in 2018. More than 300 of those games came in the seven seasons with Fergie as manager, and Bruce knows that type of influence is valuable experience for players hoping to pursue a coaching career.
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He revealed that a winning mentality was the biggest lesson he learned from his former boss. “Sir Alex has prepared very diligently,” Bruce said. “I think Fergie was also the beginning of the rotation. 25-30 years ago, he was the first one to change teams.
“It was unheard of back then. Your team was your team. But it was all done with great care. Now it’s being done all over the world, especially in big clubs, in pre-season. He used to say, ‘We don’t do that, we don’t even get on a plane for that.’
“In the end, we won because it cost us all that money, but he was diligent in his preparation. That’s the big key, tactically and especially physically, in pre-season and everything else. But his mentality was to win.”
“He used to say, ‘We are Manchester United, we are the best team, and you are the best players. We have to prove it week in and week out. By the way, the rest of the world doesn’t like us, but we have to make sure we achieve that.’ He was very careful in that respect.”
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Michael Carrick spent seven years learning from Sir Alex Ferguson (Image: Getty Images)
Bruce famously never won a full cap for England despite his success with the country’s best team in the 1990s, but despite fearing burnout, he plans to support his country this summer. This is an issue he knows well from years of coaching experience.
“The French have gotten really good again,” Bruce said. “I would never rule out the Spaniards or any of the South American teams. I’m sure England have a chance to win the World Cup because of the talent we have.”
“I think about all the players who play in the Premier League. They’ve played so much football that you just hope they’re fresh enough. They play Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday. They play games. They play games.”
“People think they’re OK, but at the end of the season they’re exhausted. They play 60 or 70 games and then they have to prepare for the biggest tournament. But our team definitely has a chance.”
Steve Bruce backed Michael Carrick to win the job (Image: JMEnternational/Getty Images)
And what about his own future? “I’m not saying never, but I believe I’ve had my time as a business owner. I’ve had a lot of fun, but there comes a time when I have to stop.
“Maybe it’s something like an international job. I had discussions with Ireland a few years ago and I had discussions with the Jamaican Football Association before Steve McLaren. In the end they ended up getting Steve.”
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