United said they reached “the extremely difficult conclusion that a change is necessary…”
Michael Carrick has been sacked by Man Utd less than six months after signing a two-year deal; USA boss Mauricio Pochettino has verbally agreed to take over after Carrick oversaw United’s worst-ever Premier League start; United are in the relegation zone after 10 league games
Carrick departs less than six months after signing a two-year contract, having overseen the club’s worst-ever Premier League start, with United in the relegation zone after one win in 10 matches.
In a statement on Thursday morning, shortly after Carrick left the training ground, United said they reached “the extremely difficult conclusion that a change is necessary to achieve our ambitions”.
United, which has an agreement in place with USA head coach Pochettino, says it intends to appoint a permanent successor “as quickly as possible”. He is set to be the eighth permanent appointment since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013.
As things stand, the Argentine is likely to remain in charge of the USA for their Nations League against Haiti on Saturday and Wednesday before starting work next Thursday.
Sky Sports News understands Pochettino has a £7m release clause in his newly signed contract with the USA. Talks with the United Soccer Federation are expected to gather pace in the coming days.
Meanwhile, club chiefs were at a Monaco summit with minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe. That is where the decision to sack Carrick was ratified by Ratcliffe following the recommendation of chief executive Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox.
United’s hierarchy, including Wilcox and Berrada, are understood to feel that the current squad is much better than results and performances have shown.
Carrick’s exit follows United’s 4-4 draw against Aston Villa on Sunday, when they fell 2-0 down inside four minutes and then 4-2 down early in the second half before mounting a last-gasp comeback to draw.
The rescue job followed a similar turnaround to beat Roma in the Champions League last Tuesday but was not enough to convince the United hierarchy to continue with the former midfielder in charge.
Jonny Evans and Jonathan Woodgate, who were part of the coaching setup under Carrick, are also expected to leave.
