Michael Carrick in pole position for Manchester United interim job

The former United midfielder is now the favourite to land the job after nudging ahead of the other main contender for the role, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

Both held face-to-face talks with United’s hierarchy and, while further discussions are expected on Monday, Carrick has emerged as the leading candidate.

Darren Fletcher has been in temporary charge for United’s last two games against Burnley and Brighton since Ruben Amorim’s sacking a week ago.

The former United and Scotland midfielder could yet form part of his old team-mate Carrick’s back room staff. It is believed another coach could also come in to support Carrick.

It would not be a surprise if Carrick advocated for a figure like Jonathan Woodgate, his former first-team coach at Middlesbrough, although that remains to be seen.

Woodgate, 45, played for Leeds and Newcastle before joining Real Madrid in 2004, although injuries blighted his time in Spain.

He was capped eight times by England and, as it happens, was a former team-mate at Leeds of the United director of football, Jason Wilcox.

Another former United player, Jonny Evans, is among those who has been assisting Fletcher. It is uncertain if the Northern Irishman would form any part of a new look coaching staff.

United have indicated a final decision has yet to be made but an announcement is expected in the next 48 hours.

If Carrick is formally confirmed, his first game will be against Manchester City at Old Trafford on Saturday lunchtime, with Premier League leaders Arsenal to face the following week.

United are currently in seventh position but remain within touching distance of Champions League qualification.

However, Sunday’s 2-1 defeat to Brighton in the FA Cup means there is no realistic chance of silverware at the club this season and underlined the scale of the job ahead.

Carrick, 44, served as a first-team coach on Solskjaer’s staff and then, when the Norwegian was sacked in November 2021, was placed in temporary charge for three games, which featured wins against Villarreal and Arsenal and a draw against Chelsea.

He has been out of work since being sacked by Middlesbrough last June after failing to reach the Championship play-offs but won admirers for the work he did on Teesside.

West Bromwich Albion made an approach to Carrick following the sacking of Ryan Mason last week but he declined the offer.

Carrick won five Premier League titles and the Champions League under Sir Alex Ferguson as a player at Old Trafford.

Solskjaer has been desperate to return to United and another crack at managing the club. He replaced José Mourinho on a caretaker basis in December 2018 and then landed the job permanently four months later.

Carrick and Kieran McKenna, now Ipswich manager, were his main first-team coaches at the time.

United want an interim manager until the end of the season to buy them time to find a long-term successor to Amorim following the Portuguese’s dismissal after just 14 months.

A number of managers with Premier League experience are on course to become free agents this summer, including Crystal Palace’s Oliver Glasner, Andoni Iraola of Bournemouth and Marco Silva at Fulham.

United may also have more chance of extracting managers currently in jobs then than in mid-season because a series of more high-profile figures could also be available after the World Cup.

These include Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti, England manager Thomas Tuchel, Mauricio Pochettino, who is in charge of the US, and Germany’s Julian Nagelsmann.

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