November 12 – Manchester United have sacked Michael Carrick after just five months as permanent manager, with Mauricio Pochettino lined up to leave the United States and replace him ahead of the Red Devils’ trip to Anfield next weekend.
Carrick’s sacking was confirmed this morning after United’s worst start to a league season in 40 years, bringing a swift end to a permanent appointment that had looked far more convincing in May.
United are 18th in the Premier League after winning one of their first 10 games and have gone eight league games without a win. They are also 17th in the Champions League stage with tough games still to play.
The club said the decision had been difficult but a change was needed to achieve its ambitions.
Carrick, a former United player, returned in January following the departure of Ruben Amorim and transformed their season, winning 12 of their last 17 league games and taking them to third place and Champions League qualification. That earned him a contract until 2028.
But defeats at Como and Bournemouth pushed Carrick close to the brink last month before he was given three more games to show signs of recovery. United lost at Chelsea, came from behind to beat Roma in Europe and then drew 4-4 with Aston Villa at Old Trafford on Sunday. This turned out to be his last match.
Director of football Jason Wilcox and chief executive Omar Berrada traveled to Monaco this week for a scheduled meeting with Sir Jim Ratcliffe, where Carrick’s position was reviewed.
The foundations had already been laid for what comes next, with United having reached an agreement in principle with Pochettino.
The move comes with an awkward detail, as Pochettino signed a new contract with U.S. Soccer on Aug. 3 that ties him to the national team until the 2030 World Cup. The deal was presented as the start of a new four-year project after he guided the hosts to the last 16 of this summer’s World Cup.
Three months later, he is ready to leave it.
His contract includes a release clause of around $10m (£7.5m), with United potentially facing an even bigger bill if members of their long-standing coaching staff follow him to Old Trafford.
Pochettino still has to oversee the USA’s Concacaf Nations League quarter-final against Haiti, with games on November 14 and 18. United return to Premier League action four days later at Liverpool, leaving little time for preparation if they complete the switch after the international games.
United have considered Pochettino on three previous occasions, following the sacking of Jose Mourinho in 2018, before the appointment of Erik ten Hag in 2022 and again when Ten Hag left in 2024.
This time they seem ready to finally make this match.
Carrick leaves after rescuing one season from United and watching the next unfold before the winter. Pochettino, meanwhile, is about to trade a World Cup project that runs until 2030 for one of the least patient jobs in club football.
Contact the writer of this story, Harry Ewing, at (email protected)