Manchester United expected to sack head coach Carrick

Reflecting on the situation, the 48 hours prior to United's season-opening fixture against Hull proved to be a turning point. With Benjamin Sesko continuing his recovery from a shin injury that curtailed his previous season, Amad Diallo sustained an ankle injury that sidelined him for seven weeks. This left Carrick without his primary striking alternative, forcing Bryan Mbeumo to move to the right side of the attack.

Carrick opted to deploy Matheus Cunha, whose tendency to drop deep resulted in him occupying the same areas as captain Bruno Fernandes. This choice neutralised United's attacking threat during a match where they appeared unprepared for the physical demands of an opponent eager for their long-awaited Premier League return.

In his capacity as an interviewer for the Nordic broadcaster Viaplay, former Norway and Middlesbrough striker Jan Aage Fjortoft later alleged that United lacked passion, a suggestion Carrick dismissed as "ridiculous". "It's one game," Carrick told the media afterwards.

The following week, United trailed against Ipswich, another newly promoted team. A slip by Marcelino Nunez in his own half allowed Cunha to set up Fernandes for an undeserved equaliser. The Portugal playmaker, who had recently been named PFA Player of the Year for 2025-26, eventually secured a hat-trick in a 5-2 victory. Since then, he has managed only one league goal, a penalty against Villa on Sunday.

Following the Ipswich win, the team travelled to Everton. United held the lead twice, the second time after Sesko scored two minutes from time as a substitute. However, deep into stoppage time, Ainsley Maitland-Niles scored from long range to prevent the visitors from winning. When asked about his confidence in the team's ability to respond to a difficult start to the season, Carrick retorted: "It's not been that bad."

What followed, however, was poor. United's fitness was repeatedly questioned. They struggled significantly against a Manchester City side that was reduced to 10 men in the first half, before their rivals secured a win through an Erling Haaland goal that referees' chief Howard Webb later conceded should not have stood. While Carrick's complaints were valid, they obscured a poor team performance.

After taking a 2-0 lead within 10 minutes against Brighton in the EFL Cup, United were outplayed and defeated, conceding two goals in four second-half minutes. The fine margins that had favoured United during Carrick's interim period were now working against them, and his coaching staff, who were praised months earlier, could not find a solution.

Carrick described an injury-time equaliser from Cunha against a Fulham side that began the match at the bottom of the table as a positive foundation. However, immediately following the international break, United were held to another draw, conceding in injury time to a 10-man Tottenham side that was out of form. The pressure continued to mount.

Lisandro Martinez, who conceded an own goal against Fulham, was responsible for the Spurs equaliser, making his post-match outburst following the 2-0 Champions League defeat by Atletico Madrid even more surprising. The Argentina defender criticised United's summer recruitment and blamed "the technical director", Wilcox.

By the time of Martinez's comments, Sesko and left-back Luke Shaw were injured. Marcus Rashford has not featured since. The rotation at left-back, which eventually saw Carrick use five different players in that position, was fully underway.

After conceding in the first minute against Atletico, Como scored within the first two minutes during a 4-1 Champions League loss for United. Fernandes subsequently criticised Carrick's tactics. He was dropped for the Bournemouth match but returned as captain for the game at Chelsea. United were defeated in both of those fixtures.

With only three wins in 15 matches across all competitions this season and the club sitting in 18th place in the Premier League, Carrick is expected to lose his job.