{"id":110268,"date":"2026-01-07T22:27:01","date_gmt":"2026-01-07T22:27:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=110268"},"modified":"2026-01-07T22:27:01","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T22:27:01","slug":"carrick-and-solskjaer-frontrunners-for-man-united-caretaker-role","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=110268","title":{"rendered":"Carrick and Solskjaer frontrunners for Man United caretaker role"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Michael Carrick and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer have emerged as the frontrunners to become Manchester United\u2019s caretaker manager until the end of the season.<\/p>\n

The former players have both previously managed United \u2013 very briefly as caretaker in Carrick\u2019s case \u2013 and are set for face-to-face talks with the club\u2019s leadership.<\/p>\n

It is not out of the question that the pair could also work together because Carrick was a significant part of Solskjaer\u2019s coaching team when he replaced Jose Mourinho at Old Trafford in 2018.<\/p>\n

Darren Fletcher, United\u2019s current under-18s coach, who has also been spoken to about the job, will continue as interim manager until a caretaker is appointed.<\/p>\n

Former United captain and pundit Gary Neville said the club were on familiar ground appointing a former player.<\/p>\n

He told Sky Sports: \u201cIt is almost like a cycle, like a movie we have all seen before and Groundhog Day.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I do think is Ole is someone who absolutely loves the club, he knows the job, he has been in the job.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe other names that have been mentioned \u2013 Michael Carrick, Ruud van Nistelrooy \u2013 these are really fantastic people.<\/p>\n

\u201cI trained with those guys for a lot of years. They love the club intensely; they get the club, but still, they are going to come under a lot of pressure in the next four or five months if results don\u2019t go their way, and they are going to have to be ready for that.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhoever is going to get it out of those three who are being mentioned, I wish them all the best because it is a tough role.\u201d<\/p>\n

Former midfielder Fletcher takes charge of his first match on Wednesday, when\u00a0United visit Burnley (20:15 GMT)\u00a0in the Premier League, after which the recruitment process will resume.<\/p>\n

Van Nistelrooy, the ex-United striker, is also believed to be a contender.<\/p>\n

Amorim was sacked on Monday\u00a0after a turbulent 14 months in charge.<\/p>\n

United plan on naming a permanent successor for Amorim in the summer.<\/p>\n

One player has told BBC Sport they felt it was possible the role could be shared by more than one of the contenders, or that Fletcher could even stay in the job until the end of the season if the next two matches are positive.<\/p>\n

Solskjaer initially took charge in a similar fashion when United sacked\u00a0Mourinho in 2018,\u00a0and he subsequently became the full-time manager for three years before he was sacked in November 2021.<\/p>\n

Carrick then had a three-game stint as temporary boss after Solskjaer\u2019s dismissal before he left the club in December 2021.<\/p>\n

The former England midfielder has been out of work since he was sacked by Championship club Middlesbrough last June after after two and a half years in charge.<\/p>\n

Solskjaer was sacked by Turkish club Besiktas in August.<\/p>\n

Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner and former Brighton boss Roberto de Zerbi \u2013 now at Marseille \u2013 are understood to be early contenders for the full-time job.<\/p>\n

Glasner, who won the FA Cup with the Eagles last season, was asked about the link during his news conference on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cI am Crystal Palace manager, and it makes no sense for you to ask me any more questions about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

How do Carrick and Solskjaer compare?<\/h2>\n

ByPaul Birch<\/strong><\/p>\n

BBC Sport journalist<\/p>\n

By far the more experienced of the two frontrunners for the interim Manchester United job, Solskjaer\u2019s managerial career stretches to 332 more games than Carrick\u2019s.<\/p>\n

After his playing days ended, Solskjaer\u2019s coaching career got off to a stunning start as he led his former club Molde to their first-ever Norwegian title in his first season in charge in 2011, and repeated the feat a year later before leaving to join Cardiff City in 2014.<\/p>\n

He was sacked after only nine months in Wales, following their relegation from the Premier League and a poor start back in the Championship.<\/p>\n

He returned to Molde for three years before United came calling following the sacking of Mourinho.<\/p>\n

He took over as caretaker boss in December 2018 and the role was made permanent in March 2019.<\/p>\n

Solskjaer took United to the Europa League final and a second-placed finish in the 2020-21 season, the joint best in the Premier League by a Red Devils manager since Sir Alex Ferguson left.<\/p>\n

However, a poor run of results led to his departure just months later, without a trophy to his name. He did, though, have a longer reign than his more experienced predecessors David Moyes, Louis van Gaal and Mourinho.<\/p>\n

After more than three years without a job, the former striker returned to management with Turkish side Besiktas in January 2025. However, his tenure lasted just 29 games and he was sacked in August after losing in the play-offs for both the Europa and Conference League.<\/p>\n

Despite not winning a trophy since leaving Molde, he still boasts a very healthy career win ratio of 53.1% as a boss.<\/p>\n

Carrick does not boast the same managerial CV as Solskjaer, given he has had only one permanent role with Middlesbrough.<\/p>\n

Following his retirement from a glittering playing career at Old Trafford, Carrick immediately joined Mourinho\u2019s coaching staff at Manchester United at the end of the 2017-18 season.<\/p>\n

After the Portuguese was sacked, he was kept on as a first-team coach throughout Ole Gunnar Solskjaer\u2019s 168-game reign. Following the Norwegian\u2019s departure in November 2021 Carrick took over briefly on an interim basis, winning two and drawing one of his three matches in charge. He left following Ralf Rangnick\u2019s appointment.<\/p>\n

After nearly a year out of the game, he joined Middlesbrough for his first full-time role in management. He guided Boro to a play-off finish in 2022-23 only to lose to Coventry in the semi-finals. However, his side then narrowly missed out on the top six in successive campaigns, resulting in the former England midfielder being sacked in June last year. His win rate as a manager is 46.8%.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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