Manchester United’s players are set to return to training at Carrington on Tuesday – but it is still uncertain whether Michael Carrick will be in charge.
United head coach Carrick was at Carrington on Monday to watch the club’s U21s take on Hull in a behind-closed-doors game.
The first-team players had a scheduled day off but Omar Berrada, the chief executive, and Jason Wilcox, football, also met at the training base, with their talks focused on next steps following Sunday’s 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth.
- Eddie Howe and Julian Nagelsmann expected frontrunners if Michael Carrick sacked
- <a s defeat to Bournemouth saw Carrick drop captain Bruno Fernandes to the bench after he questioned his tactics following the 4-1 Champions League loss to Como. It extended United's winless run to eight games across all competitions.
Carrick has overseen United’s worst start to a Premier League season. They are 16th in the table, with seven points from their seven games, and just one point adrift of the relegation zone.
Carrick was initially appointed as United boss in January 2026 on a contract until the end of the season, following Ruben Amorim’s sacking earlier in that campaign. He delivered a brilliant run of results, winning 12 of 17 matches to earn a third-place finish in the Premier League and a return to the Champions League.
Carrick was nominated for Premier League Manager of the Season and, in May, signed a new contract running to 2028.
How a ‘strange day’ at Carrington unfolded
“It’s been quite a bizarre, strange day at Carrington. This morning, we saw director of football Jason Wilcox and CEO Omar Berrada arrive quite early. A few players were in receiving treatment on injuries. Captain Bruno Fernandes, Patrick Dorgu, Manuel Ugarte and Benjamin Sesko were all in.
“Michael Carrick arrived just before 2pm. From what we understand, he was here to watch the U21s take on Hull City.
“It paints quite an awkward picture. On one end of the car park at Carrington you have the academy building, where Carrick would have been watching the U21s’ game, while on the other side you would have had Wilcox and Berrada discussing his future as well as what is the future of Man Utd, what are the next steps potentially in the head coach position.
“As far as we know, no talks between Carrick and Wilcox happened. It’s quite tough when you look at the timeline because the game will have finished around 4pm.
“We saw Wilcox leave Carrington around 4.30pm. We understand Carrick left around 4.45pm. Would they have had talks today? It remains to be seen.
“Carrick’s future remains in huge doubt and there’s no further clarity on whether he will continue or not.”
Why there hasn’t been swift action on Carrick’s future
“I thought this would happen pretty quickly. The fact it hasn’t happened makes me think one of two things are going on.
“Probably the most likely is Man Utd’s bosses are taking their time to consider who they want as a replacement. The worst-case scenario for Man Utd would be if they sacked Michael Carrick and the person they went for didn’t want the job, or they couldn’t agree a deal with them and they were left in limbo for days, possibly weeks.
“We know it happens in football all the time – clubs try to set up a replacement before they get rid of the incumbent.
“The second thing is they are very conscious – and it was made clear to them at Old Trafford – just how popular Michael Carrick is among the Man Utd support.
“The same thing happened with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in 2021 – he gave the most incredible departure video, despite being sacked by Man Utd.
“The club wanted to make sure it ended amicably. I think Man Utd bosses are thinking the same thing here. There might not be an exit video from Carrick but they want this done humanely and respectfully.
“If they don’t, the backlash from supporters could be even stronger.”
