Carrick's sensational start continues with a February Manager of the Month nomination. Can he lead United to Champions League glory?
It's safe to say it has been an outstanding start to life as Manchester United boss for club legend Michael Carrick, having taken over from Ruben Amorim in January of this year.
The 44-year old has won six and drawn one of his seven games to begin his second spell in charge. His scalps include the likes of Pep Guardiola, Mikel Arteta, Marco Silva and David Moyes.
In the month of February, United beat Fulham, Spurs and Everton, whilst drawing away to West Ham United, in a result that has actually aged pretty well since. The team are now in a very good position to secure UEFA Champions League football for the first time since the 23/24 season, where they finished below Copenhagen and Galatasaray.
As a result of these efforts, Carrick has been recognised by the Premier League with a nomination for the Manager of the Month award for February. He joins Arne Slot of Liverpool, Pep Guardiola of Manchester City, and Keith Andrews of Brentford.
Many people like to talk about the "manager of the month" curse, but, well, Carrick won the award in January and followed it up with a nomination in February, so it doesn't sound like much of a curse. It's almost as if it's quite a myth, who could have guessed.
As for March, it was a good start with a 2-1 win at home to Crystal Palace. Unfortunately, this was followed up with a defeat to Newcastle United. From here, the team will face Aston Villa (H) and AFC Bournemouth (A). The more nominations, the better.
It is clear that the objective for the season is securing that Champions League spot. If Carrick manages to secure that, it puts United in an interesting position. Will they feel they have to offer him the job after that?
There could be some elite managers on the market this summer, but it would feel very harsh. That said, for all we know, Carrick may not want the job. He does not come across as a person who enjoys all of the spotlight. Much like how Lee Carsley did his job as England manager, but made it pretty clear he did not want the job long term.
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