06 May 2026 23:39:17
Carrick has done very well results wise there can be no arguments there. That is a very big tick in his favour.
There is one thing that has stood out to me since his arrival and it can often be over looked. He appears to be a terrific man manager. The Squad appears totally unified and I've seen him after games with several players after games. He appears to have their total respect. That does not come easily nor should be taken lightly.

He has shown a bit of steel by practically cutting the likes of mount zirkzee and ugarte out sending them a clear message but still keeping them 'onside'.
It can be argued that this is a honeymoon period and can rightly asked if Carrick has the ability to move then up a level after a summer recruitment drive?
I strongly believe that the club should entertain and get deeply into discussions with a couple of other strong candidates before deciding on who to make permanent manager.

I don't consider Carrick the ex player when I look at him I have zero emotional attachment to him or his coaching team.

He has ticked 2 out of the 3 most important criteria for me.
1. Results. Can't be faulted.

2. Man management and squad unity, effort, belief, desire. Imo can't be faulted.

3. Entertainment, style of play, game management, attack minded. Brave decision making, excitement etc (hard to define). For me this is all well below par. There are mitigating circumstances like thin squad, poor options so i'm not sure that we can set up to attack and our players suit counter attacking play.

So some great green flags for Carrick and some pretty big red ones. Lots of reservations big gaps in his cv etc.
He has been impressive with the media and is media savvy unlike ole who had me cringing everyone he opened his mouth.

All candidates will have question marks but Carrick has the players behind him and that's one of the greenest green flags you could wish for. Players like playing for him and are finding ways to win.
He has made himself a legitimate candidate and has thrown down the gauntlet to the director's asking them to find someone better if they can.

1.) 07 May 2026
07 May 2026 08:19:13
We're scoring close to 2 goals per game. That's 76 per season, which no team this year has managed to achieve. We have also shipped too many, which actually makes for more entertaining games, or more nail-biting ones, depending on one's perspective. Kind of just like the old days. Ferguson's United always gave up chances.

In the last few games, Carrick has shown a good awareness of what's going wrong and made adjustments to fix it, like reorganizing at half time v. Brentford when Mbuemo and Dalot were being completely bamboozled. He cannot be blamed at all for Liverpool coming back into the game. That was all on the players. The overall game strategy was good, and, but for two dumb errors, we should have won that game going away. But we came through in the end, which speaks to his faith in what he's doing and the attitude of the squad under his leadership.

The squad is thin and he doesn't have many good options off the bench, but, on the other hand, he has benefitted from a very light schedule.

It needs strengthening and deepening. We all know this, and, obviously, so do the powers that be. My concern would be Mbuemo and Dalot's dips in form, at least in terms of goal-scoring. You are right, and I've mentioned this before, that Mbuemo in particular seems to suit a counterattacking team (as obviously did Wissa). My other concern would be an over-reliance on one player's creativity. Bruno seems extremely durable, but whether he can keep it up over a 60-game season remains to be seen.

I don't find the lack of experience argument particularly convincing. Ancelotti, Pep, and Mourinho were all without much coaching experience when they were given their breaks. I would have been championing Iraola, but I think it's going to be very hard not to give Carrick the job, as long as the players don't decide they've done enough and bottle the last 3 games.

2.) 07 May 2026
07 May 2026 10:53:21
Careful, boys, you'll give Red Man a heart attack.

3.) 07 May 2026
07 May 2026 11:16:21
AJH, its important to recognise the good elements of what Carrick has done so far.
imo it is equally important to look at other options.
All options, including Carrick, will have positives and negatives.
Someone else could blow their socks off during discussions.
Carrick, imo, has shown some really good qualities. I dont know, and in fact nobody knows, if he can do better with better players over time, but that can be said of any candidate.
Red Man will acknowledge that nobody could have done better than Carrick over the last 4 months. Thats not to say that nobody can do better than him going forward.


There are no guarantees.
To say he will fail and thats its an emotional appointment if they make it is simply not true.
If he is appointed it will be because they have seen a lot more than we have.
His man management has been outstanding, imo, and that cannot be overlooked.
Players are playing for him, and that is more than half the battle.
Im not sure at all if Carrick can move up to the next level, but there are not many serial winners in the running.
We have had serial winners in LvG, Jose, and etc., but none of them could get us competing for the league.

4.) 07 May 2026
07 May 2026 11:45:46
I meant Amad Diallo, and not Dalot! Dalot never had that much form to lose.

5.) 07 May 2026
07 May 2026 14:23:54
I agree with your post, Ken. I am just ribbing Red Man, who has been very clear in his view. I am struggling to see an exciting available candidate right now, Iraola perhaps, but can he handle the United effect? I suspect Carrick will be appointed shortly.

6.) 07 May 2026
07 May 2026 16:03:16
I can't see past Carrick now. I don't think it needs to be overcomplicated either. Offer a 2 year contract and review again. Some will throw out the "and waste 2 years" or "send the club backwards for 2 years" statements, but personally, I don't think this will happen.

Can't guarantee it, but no more than people can guarantee it will happen.

The only thing I can see as a possibility for delaying the appointment, and that may result in a different manager, is if PSG win the European Cup and Enrique decides he wants a new challenge?!