Michael Carrick already planning for next season as chances of permanent Man Utd job improve

MICHAEL CARRICK is planning for the long-term at Manchester United amid his growing chances of staying on as head coach.

Carrick was appointed as coach for the rest of the season seven weeks ago and United have won six and drawn one from his seven games in charge.

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With no outstanding external candidate and United up to third in the Premier League table for the first time since they finished there in May 2023, the job is possibly becoming Carrick’s to lose.

Carrick’s agent, Jo Tongue, was in the Old Trafford directors’ box for United’s win against Crystal Palace on Sunday.

United head to Newcastle on Wednesday night and have not won at St James’ Park with fans present since December 2018.

Victory at his boyhood club would be another feather in Carrick’s cap and the United great is loving the job so far.

When asked if he feels his record gives him a good chance of remaining in charge next season, Carrick laughed: “It’s going to be every week this, isn’t it?

“There’s no getting away from the situation of course. There’s not really an awful lot I can say about it to be honest.

“I love being here. I love doing what I’m doing. I’ve said it from the start, I’m not making any decisions for short-term or quick fixes.

“I think it’s the responsibility, however long I’m here, to make decisions that are the best for the football club in the long term.

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“Of course, winning games helps and the boys are doing great with that. We’ll just have to see where it ends up.”

United are 13 points behind leaders Arsenal and Manchester City, who they beat in Carrick’s first two games in charge in January.

The club have targeted a title triumph in 2028 but Carrick was asked about the possibility of United making an unlikely tilt in the final months of THIS season.

“You threw that one in as well, didn’t you?” Carrick replied.

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“Listen, you can’t rule anything out in football, but we’ve got to be realistic and know where it’s at.

“I think we’ve just got to try and keep winning games and see.

“Above us now there are two fantastic teams. There’s some really good teams in and around us.

“We’ve had a good run, we’re certainly not getting carried away. You’ve got to be patient but you’ve got to be living in the moment a little bit, certainly, take the confidence.

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“Wherever that’s going to take us, we’ll just have to see. But we’ll keep pushing anyway.

“Definitely a glass is half full on what you can achieve more than the negative side, that’s for sure.

“Of course, I’m being realistic about it. We have to win a lot of football matches for [a title challenge] to happen.

“So we’ll do what we’ve been doing and go one at a time. We’ve got one more [game] and then we’ve got a little bit of a break before Villa.

“So we’ll go and give it everything on Wednesday night.”

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Carrick dabbled with punditry after he was sacked by Middlesbrough last year when he appeared on Match of the Day in October.

The 44-year-old also popped up on Amazon Prime for their Champions League coverage in September but, whatever the future holds at United, Carrick seems set to continue in coaching.

“Was I not very good at that, no?” Carrick chuckled when his punditry appearances were mentioned.

“Listen, I enjoy working with players. I enjoy trying to help players.

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“The responsibility here is the whole football club and I enjoy it. It’s a privilege to be able to influence certain things, but I enjoy working with players and helping them.

“Whether that’s the career, whether that’s for the team, whether that’s development week to week, it’s something I just really enjoy and am passionate about.

“I never really lost it, to be honest, whether it’s managing, head coach, whatever role that is.

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“It comes down to working with players and people really to get the best out of people and backroom staff and supporters.

“It’s something I like seeing – that development and connection growing.

“So whether that’s skills or technical skills or whether you see the group coming together it’s nice when you are part of that.”

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