Manchester United will soon appoint Michael Carrick as interim manager after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s bid to return was rejected by some senior players. Carrick will remain in charge until the end of the season, marking his second time in charge of the club where he played 464 times as a player. Solskjaer was considered the favorite to replace the sacked Ruben Amorim and had been interviewed twice for the role, but he was left out after some players expressed distrust of him to club officials.
The players are understood to have expressed their desire for Carrick to be in charge for the remainder of the season. United legend Solskjaer was in charge of the club from 2018 to 2021 before being sacked. Carrick’s appointment is expected to be decided in the next 24 hours and his first training session will be held on Wednesday ahead of his first game in charge against Manchester City this weekend.
It will be a challenging start for Carrick given United’s recent form, with just one win in their last seven games in all competitions. Carrick served as caretaker manager for three games after Solskjær’s sacking five years ago, securing two wins and one draw until Ralf Rangnick took over.
Carrick has not been with the club since being sacked by Championship side Middlesbrough in June. In the 2022-23 season, he led Middlesbrough to the Championship play-offs, but lost to Coventry in the semi-finals.
Boro narrowly missed out on finishing in the top six in consecutive seasons, leading to Carrick’s sacking. The former England midfielder, who won 18 major trophies as a player at Old Trafford, including winning the Champions League in 2008, joined United manager Jose Mourinho’s coaching staff after retiring at the end of the 2017-18 season.
Following Mourinho’s departure, Carrick remained as first-team coach during Solskjær’s 168-game tenure.
Darren Fletcher has been interim manager for United’s last two games following Amorim’s sacking. However, after drawing 2-2 away with Burnley in the Premier League, the Red Devils lost 2-1 at home to Brighton in the FA Cup third round on Sunday.
