According to The Daily Telegraph, Manchester United dismissed Carrick and appointed their third manager of the year this week, all stemming from the decision to extend Erik ten Hag's contract in July 2024. Insiders admitted that keeping ten Hag at the time was a fundamental error, and his subsequent dismissal just 116 days later triggered a "domino effect" that shaped two and a half years of turbulence.
For Manchester United executives tasked this week with dismissing Carrick and appointing their third manager of the year, all roads lead back to the fateful decision to extend Erik ten Hag’s contract in July 2024. If time could be turned back, ten Hag would have been sacked after winning the FA Cup, and Thomas Tuchel or Roberto De Zerbi would likely have been appointed manager. They now admit that keeping ten Hag was a fundamental error, and his subsequent dismissal just 116 days later triggered what insiders on Thursday called a “domino effect” that they believe shaped much of the subsequent two and a half years of turbulence. Had ten Hag left then, they would be highly unlikely to be searching for a new manager months into the 2024-25 season, and perhaps the eras of Ruben Amorim and Carrick would not have happened at all. In hindsight, Manchester United’s hierarchy certainly feel things would be very different now.
However, Mauricio Pochettino is set to become Manchester United’s eighth permanent manager since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement 13 years ago, taking over a team in the relegation zone, while angry fans are at war with the ownership, publicly questioning the competence of the club’s administrators. Some supporters will argue that at least there appears to be an admission of significant mistakes and an understanding of why Carrick—a club legend who has always conducted himself with dignity—should feel so aggrieved by the manner of his dismissal, which is a start. After all, he deserved better than to be left in the dark while Manchester United sounded out Pochettino, and football director Jason Wilcox and chief executive Omar Berrada were instructed to travel to Monaco to meet with Sir Jim Ratcliffe. Others, of course, will feel that after so many mistakes have left Pochettino with a huge job on his hands, change is imperative. But Berrada and Wilcox still have the backing and trust of Sir Jim Ratcliffe to lead Manchester United out of the wilderness, and Pochettino is coming in, even if those in power are hard-pressed to confidently sell the idea that things are not as chaotic behind the scenes as many fans believe and fear.
First ten Hag, 14 months later Amorim, then Carrick 10 months after that. An eighth-place finish, followed by 15th, then third last season, and now 18th, one point from safety. This is not a compelling track record, but in all three cases, the internal feeling was that the pressure became so immense that a certain level of underperformance and decline ensued, meaning change was inevitable. Those in power admit they underestimated the scale of the pressure, noise, and scrutiny that comes with Manchester United, especially when the team is struggling. They also underestimated the need for a manager with broad shoulders, a specific character, and experience to handle all of this, in addition to tactical acumen and innovation to build and sustain a winning team. Why it took so long to realize this is hard to know.
Ten Hag won the League Cup and FA Cup, but he was too headmaster-like, presided over a string of poor signings, and his team was too open. Amorim was too inexperienced and emotional. As for Carrick, they believed he was the calmest of the three in the Old Trafford pressure cooker, did well to give the players some freedom after Amorim, and led the club back to the Champions League last season. But there were concerns about the team's lack of a solid structure, which manifested as chaos both offensively and defensively when results spiraled downwards. The rebuttal to all this is that if overall recruitment had been better, Manchester United would not be struggling so much, regardless of who was in the dugout. Carrick certainly received little help after a disappointing summer transfer window when Manchester United chose not to go all-in for key targets due to financial constraints, and the defense looked particularly vulnerable. Meanwhile, Manchester United’s hierarchy felt the squad was much better than the results and performances suggested and admitted that some key injuries did not help. They still believe that if Pochettino can spark the kind of resurgence Carrick achieved from January last season, Manchester United can secure European qualification.
How Pochettino handles the ownership structure and interacts with Berrada and Wilcox remains to be seen. Those at the helm insist that communication channels are simple and direct, despite outside perceptions to the contrary, and that there remains a sense of unity among all of them—including Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his co-owners the Glazer family. The extent of the abuse directed at Wilcox is met with a cold response internally, but it is accepted that the position attracts an exposure and scrutiny unlike any other football club in the country. Speaking to those who know Berrada, they will insist he still has the energy, drive, and conviction to lead Manchester United forward. And the progress made in cost-cutting, stadium projects, and developments in other areas of the club is often overlooked amidst the first-team issues. Ultimately, however, Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his team will be judged on on-field performance, and there must be a huge improvement from now on. Another managerial failure is unthinkable.