Gary Neville advises United against appointing Sir Alex favourite as permanent head coach

New Manchester United caretaker manager Michael Carrick is preparing to face Manchester City at Old Trafford on Saturday, 17 January, in the Premier League. The Englishman is likely to have a sense of déjà vu, having previously been in interim charge for four games in 2021. The Red Devils parted ways with former head coach Ruben Amorim at the start of this year, and put Darren Fletcher in interim charge for two games. The Premier League giants were looking for a candidate to fill the managerial position on a temporary basis until the end of the season, when a permanent appointment is expected. After much speculation, Carrick usurped former United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in the race for the caretaker job. It was reported that Sir Alex Ferguson favoured the Englishman over the Norwegian for the job. Carrick’s job at hand One of Carrick’s first task will be galvanising a squad that has blown hot and cold this season. The team is currently on a run of just three wins in their last 13 games in all competitions, and was knocked out of the FA Cup in the third round last weekend. Amorim’s turbulent 14 months in charge saw a lot of ups and downs, and the team has recently shifted back to a back four following the Portuguese head coach’s departure. The absence of key figures such as Matthijs de Ligt, Amad Diallo, Bryan Mbeumo and Noussair Mazraoui in recent weeks has not helped either. Carrick famously steadied the ship during his previous stint as the interim manager following Solskjaer’s dismissal in November 2021. The Englishman managed two wins in his three games in charge, and fans will hope he can continue that form in his second spell. Michael Carrick Managerial Stats: TeamFromToGames PlayedGames WonGames DrawnGames LostWin % Manchester United (caretaker)21 November 20212 December 2021321066.67 Middlesbrough24 October 20224 June 202513663244946.32 Career Total——13965254946.76 Source: Wikipedia. A recent report relayed by The Peoples Person states that Carrick desires the full-time job at the Theatre of Dreams. However, one of his former teammates has now warned the club against such a decision. Gary Neville wants a proven permanent manager Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, as cited by ESPN, United legend Gary Neville insisted that the club must appoint a proven manager at the end of this season. He said: “I hope he does really well. There cannot be any consideration that Michael takes the job beyond this season, for Michael and for the club.” “If he wins every game, look, we could be sat here in the season where he’s done unbelievably well, and we’re always thinking the fans are up and they’re in the Champions League places, fifth or whatever. It could happen if there’s a good run and we could all be getting swayed with it.” “I honestly feel like [you have to look at others] at the end of the season when you’ve got [Mauricio] Pochettino, [Thomas] Tuchel and [Carlo] Ancelotti.” “I’ve said Ancelotti. I just feel purely because he’s 66 years of age, he’s got probably the best job in the world right now. He’s probably got one job left at club level. If there’s one person who’s got the patience, the composure, the experience of the Premier League.” Final Thoughts Fans will be more interested in recent results than talk of the next permanent manager after a disappointing last 18 months. A decent run under Carrick will improve the mood at United and also strengthen his case for a permanent stay at the Theatre of Dreams. However, after burning their fingers with Erik ten Hag and Amorim, perhaps INEOS would be better advised to appoint a world-class name with a proven track record for the position. The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Deepungsu Pandit Deepungsu has been a Manchester United fan since 2000. In his playing days, he was an attacking midfielder with a proclivity for the back heel. Right now, however, he prefers to operate as a regista. Deepungsu has been writing about the Red Devils, Football, and other things since 2009. He has worked for over seven years with Sportskeeda, writing football reviews, opinions and news articles. Deepungsu also maintains a blog, The Thinking Me, where he writes about life and things that interest him. His favourite Manchester United player is Paul Scholes.