Michael Carrick could take charge of Manchester United again next season after qualifying for the Champions League with a win against Liverpool on Sunday afternoon.
Michael Carrick was appointed as a short-term head coach until the end of the Premier League season, replacing Darren Fletcher as interim manager and Rúben Amorim, who was fired for his comments in wake of the 1-1 draw against Leeds United.
Carrick was forced to compete for the short-term position with Ole Gunnar Solskjær and Ruud van Nistelrooy. All three had led United on an interim basis before 2026, with Van Nistelrooy as the most recent example; he took charge after Erik ten Hag was dismissed. Carrick was awarded the job, but had a difficult start to his tenure, with just three days before the visit of Manchester City, and a trip to Arsenal the following weekend.
Not only did Carrick win both games, but he did it playing exciting football, which looked something like the style Manchester United fans were hoping for. Quite the difference from football United fans had gotten used to under Rúben Amorim.
Many thought that good form could not continue, and while there was a slight bad patch, Carrick has now secured Champions League football for the next season. And he did it with a 3-2 win against Liverpool. And Kobbie Mainoo scored the winner. Not bad, eh?
Why Carrick has earned a chance
"In my opinion, he completely deserves it," Casemiro told ESPN when asked about his thoughts on Carrick's chances of the permanent United job. " I think he’s a guy who has already demonstrated that he has very good qualities to be a Manchester United coach.
"So it’s not up to me to choose, it’s up to the club. But if I could give my opinion, of course, he deserves it, and he deserves the club’s total trust. Of course, the season is year-round, but since he arrived, he’s been doing an incredible job, and I think that with more time, he has everything to be a great manager of Manchester United."
That is pretty emphatic from the outgoing Brazilian. But it is not just Casemiro who is a fan of United's current head coach.
"From a personal view he's the right man," said Amad while the squad were in the Republic of Ireland. "He has a lot of experience; he knows the club and has the DNA.
"His relationship with every player is very good. Sometimes this kind of manager can bring the club where they belong.
"It's not the players who decide but my honest opinion is we're really happy to have Michael Carrick as a manager."
Bryan Mbeumo weighed in, too. "We've got good experience with him," he said. "He knows how to talk to us and we're going to try to take as much as we can from him.
"It's been easier because he knows the place. It's been great to work under him."
Evidently, the players are happy. Michael Carrick is happy. And, most importantly, the fans are happy. They are enjoying their time with Carrick at the helm, and the football they are seeing at Old Trafford. Even Sir Jim Ratcliffe is happy enough to fly into Manchester and have a cup of tea with the head coach.
All too familiar...
As with any decision, there are both pros and cons to appointing Carrick as the permanent head coach of Manchester United.
One concern would be that it was widely reported that CEO Omar Berrada and Director of football Jason Wilcox were searching for an experienced head coach. Think Carlo Ancelloti or Thomas Tuchel. Carrick is not that.
Another worry would be that United have been in this very position before. Ole Gunnar Solskjær took interim charge after Jose Mourinho was sacked, and was rewarded with the full-time job. As soon as he was, United fell off a cliff with their performances. Overall, Solskjær's time was a success - and perhaps the best any manager has done at Old Trafford since Sir Alex Ferguson left - but a trophy was not won. United cannot afford for that to happen again.
As long as he remains at Old Trafford, Carrick will have a Solskjær-shaped cloud above his head. The question is: Is the sky grey or blue?