Manchester United Poised to Sack Michael Carrick After Worst Start in 40 Years

Manchester United look increasingly likely to sack head coach Michael Carrick, with the club’s senior executives set to meet co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe in Monaco on Wednesday to decide the 45-year-old’s future.

Chief executive Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox are expected to recommend a change at the top after a disastrous start to the season left United 18th in the Premier League, with only eight points from their opening ten matches.

No final decision has yet been made, and the club insist the review process agreed during the international break is still running its course. But the mood inside Old Trafford has shifted decisively since Sunday’s chaotic 4-4 draw with Aston Villa, and multiple reports now describe Carrick’s dismissal as the expected outcome.

FAKTA

• Head coach: Michael Carrick, 45 — in charge since January 2026, permanent deal signed in May
• League position: 18th in the Premier League, 8 points from 10 games
• League record this season: one win in 10 matches
• Overall record: 15 wins in 32 games since taking charge
• Decisive meeting: Wednesday in Monaco — Berrada and Wilcox present their review to Sir Jim Ratcliffe
• Favourite to succeed him: Mauricio Pochettino, the United States head coach
• Next match: Liverpool away at Anfield, Sunday 22 November

The Decision in Monaco

Wednesday’s meeting in Monaco was scheduled before the international break as the moment United would take stock of their season. Berrada and Wilcox will present the findings of a full performance review, led by Wilcox, and give their recommendations on Carrick’s future to Ratcliffe, who controls the club’s sporting policy.

Ratcliffe will have the final say, in consultation with the Glazer family, who remain the majority owners. Carrick, meanwhile, reported for work at the Carrington training ground on Tuesday morning as normal, and when asked recently about the idea of walking away, he was blunt: that was not going to happen.

United had chosen to stand by their head coach after the 3-0 home defeat by Bournemouth on 25 October, with the intention of reassessing his position during this month’s international break. The draw with Villa, which left the club with their worst start to a domestic campaign in 40 years, appears to have settled the argument for the men running the football operation.

A Season That Unravelled

Carrick took charge in January after the departure of Ruben Amorim and earned the job permanently in May on a two-year deal. His early months brought enough encouragement for the board to back him, but this season has unravelled quickly.

United have won just one of their ten league matches, and the defensive problems that haunted them last season have only deepened. The 4-4 draw with Aston Villa on Sunday summed up the campaign so far: thrilling going forward, fragile at the back, and unable to hold a lead when it mattered most.

The numbers tell their own story. Eight points from a possible 30 is a return no club of United’s size can accept, and the team now sits in the relegation zone with the hardest fixture of the season — a trip to Liverpool — waiting on the other side of the break.

Who Could Replace Him

Mauricio Pochettino has emerged as the leading candidate to take over. The Argentine, currently head coach of the United States national team, is understood to be open to a return to the Premier League, and multiple sources have told BBC Sport he would welcome an approach from Old Trafford.

United have spoken to Pochettino about the job on at least two previous occasions. He signed a new contract with US Soccer in the summer that runs until the 2030 World Cup, but reports suggest it contains a release clause of around £7 million — a fee United could pay to bring him in before the Liverpool match.

Other names remain in the frame. The club sounded out former Newcastle manager Eddie Howe and former Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann in October, while former Chelsea boss Antonio Conte is also known to be keen on the role. Whoever takes over will inherit a squad low on confidence and a club searching for its eighth permanent manager since Sir Alex Ferguson retired.

For Carrick, a former United midfielder who spent 12 years as a player at Old Trafford, the end — if it comes on Wednesday — will be a painful one. He was handed the job with the club’s backing and the supporters’ goodwill. In the end, the results simply ran out.

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