Michael Carrick was at Manchester United’s training ground on Monday afternoon as elsewhere at the Carrington base Jason Wilcox, the sporting director, and Omar Berrada, the chief executive, deliberated whether to sack the head coach.
Carrick arrived at about 1.50pm to watch the under-21s play a behind-closed-doors game.
Wilcox and Berrada met at Carrington on Monday morning after United’s 3-0 loss to Bournemouth on Sunday at Old Trafford that left Carrick’s job in the balance . Wilcox departed just before 5pm and Carrick went shortly after.
The defeat made it eight games without a win for Carrick’s side, who have two victories all season. United are in 16th in the Premier League, a point above the relegation zone.
If the 45-year-old is removed, Eddie Howe remains Wilcox’s preferred candidate , with contact between them understood to have been made. The former Newcastle manager is open to taking up the position, subject to negotiations.
Howe would be less expensive to recruit than Unai Emery, another admired manager, because Aston Villa would demand about £20m in compensation for the Spaniard.
Julian Nagelsmann, the former Germany and Bayern Munich head coach, is highly regarded by Christopher Vivell, United’s head of recruitment, who is believed to have sounded out his fellow German, but Wilcox’s view may hold more sway with Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who controls football policy at United. Antonio Conte, who left Napoli in the summer, is another who may be in the frame.
Carrick dropped Bruno Fernandes for the Bournemouth loss for “pure football reasons”, he said. This came after the 32-year-old criticised Carrick for his tactics in last Wednesday’s 4-1 loss at Como.
The captain was an unused substitute and was booed, along with other players, by fans in the Stretford End at the end of the defeat by Bournemouth.
On Monday Fernandes liked an Instagram post that said: “Never push a loyal person to the point where they no longer care.” The post also said: “The person holding everything together is usually the one nobody thinks to check on.”
Ineos, which is owned by Ratcliffe, has reportedly put FC Lausanne-Sport up for sale. Ineos declined to comment when contacted by the Guardian. Lausanne-Sport are bottom of the top division in Switzerland.
