Manchester United's bleak midwinter took another wrong turn at the weekend when Brighton & Hove Albion won 2-1 at Old Trafford in the third round of the FA Cup.
It means United's season will only feature 40 games, after they failed to qualify for European competition last term and were dumped out of the Carabao Cup on penalties by League Two Grimsby Town in August.
The last time they played so few matches in a campaign was 1914/15, when football was interrupted by the not insignificant matter of World War One.
Darren Fletcher led United as caretaker manager for the second time after Ruben Amorim's dramatic dismissal a week ago. As in the 2-2 draw with relegation-threatened Burnley, Fletcher's side created more chances than their opponents but lacked a clinical edge against Brighton.
The former Scotland midfielder is now expected to hand over the reins until the end of the season to an interim head coach, whose first game in charge will come against rivals City in the Manchester derby at Old Trafford this Saturday.
Despite speculation over former boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer returning to the dugout, another ex-United player from the Sir Alex Ferguson era appears to have moved ahead in the assessments of Omar Berrada, Jason Wilcox and the Old Trafford hierarchy.
MORE: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer record at Man United: Why was he sacked last time
Michael Carrick record as a manager
Carrick's managerial career is limited: his only senior position — aside from a brief former spell as caretaker boss at United — was in charge of Middlesbrough from October 2022 to June 2025.
According to multiple reports, including Sky Sports, Carrick is favourite to be named as United interim head coach until the end of the season. This makes sense given his connections to the club.
He has worked in a coaching capacity at Old Trafford before: he joined Jose Mourinho's staff alongside another promoted academy coach, Kieran McKenna, in 2018 after his retirement from playing. When Mourinho was sacked in December 2018, Carrick and McKenna stayed on as assistants to Solskjaer, who was appointed on an interim basis before being given the role full-time following an impressive initial run of results.
Carrick then had three games in charge of United after Solskjaer was dismissed in November 2021, before Ralf Rangnick took over. He managed wins over Villarreal and Arsenal, and a draw away to Chelsea, who were reigning European champions at the time.
Michael Carrick managerial record
| Team | Time in charge | W-D-L | Win % |
| Man United (caretaker) | Nov. 2021 - Dec. 2021 | 2-1-0 | 66.7 |
| Middlesbrough | Oct. 2022 - June 2025 | 63-49-24 | 46.3 |
What clubs has Michael Carrick managed?
Manchester United (caretaker)
A 4-1 defeat at Watford in November 2021 brought the end of Solskjaer's United tenure.
Before Rangnick arrived as interim manager, a move that itself preceded Erik ten Hag's appointment, Carrick was installed as caretaker manager and went unbeaten through three games.
Carrick's United won away at Villreal in the Champions League and drew 1-1 with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge before claiming a 3-2 victory over Arsenal at Old Trafford. He left the club when Rangnick took over.
Despite dropping Cristiano Ronaldo from the team for the draw at Chelsea, the Portugal star said his old teammate had the makings of a top manager.
"Michael Carrick was a class act as a player and he can become a great coach as well," he posted on Twitter, now X. "Nothing is impossible for this guy. Personally, I'm proud to have played with him by my side as well as with him as a manager on our bench."
Michael Carrick was a class act as a player and he can become a great coach as well. Nothing is impossible for this guy. Personally, I’m proud to have played with him by my side as well as with him as a manager on our bench. 🙌🏽👊🏽 pic.twitter.com/gCgxDcDQYw
— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) December 3, 2021
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Middlesbrough
Carrick was appointed as Middlesbrough manager in October 2022, with the club languishing 21st in the Championship after 16 matches. The new boss immediately overhauled their fortunes, as Boro won 16 of the next 23 games to fire themselves into playoff contention.
In March 2023, Carrick was named Championship Manager of the Month and Middlesbrough finished fourth in the table, qualifying for the playoffs. They lost their semifinal to Coventry City, who were duly beaten on penalties by Luton Town in the final at Wembley.
Boro were unable to finish in the top six in 2023/24, finishing eighth, but a run to the Carabao Cup semifinals helped to earn Carrick a new three-year contract. A year later, he was sacked after Middlesbrough finished 10th in 2024/25.
What are Michael Carrick's tactics and style of play?
At Middlesbrough, Carrick favoured a possession-oriented 4-2-3-1, which would align broadly with the set-up Fletcher used for his two-game caretaker period.
In possession, Middlesbrough would frequently tuck in one full-back and have the other join the line of attacking midfielders to in effect form a 3-2-4-1 shape. This use of full-backs is something that has become commonplace in the modern game, most notably for Pep Guardiola's Manchester City and Mikel Arteta's Arsenal. It is also an approach that should suit attack-minded full-backs such as Diogo Dalot and Patrick Dorgu, each of whom played as wing-backs in Amorim's signature 3-4-2-1.
Similarly, Noussair Mazraoui appears to be an ideal candidate to play as the starting right-back who tucks in to form a back three in possession. That would then mean the left-back pushing forward and giving Matheus Cunha licence to play closer to centre-forward Benjamin Sesko and provide an added goal threat.
Playing 4-2-3-1 would also allow for Bruno Fernandes to play closer to goal than he often did under Amorim and create scope for Kobbie Mainoo to return to the starting line-up as one of the deeper midfield two.