Ian Wright has made it clear that he disagrees with Gary Neville’s views on the possibility of Michael Carrick being Manchester United head-coach beyond just this season.
Michael Carrick has made an excellent start to life as Manchester United head-coach, having secured two wins in his first two games against rivals Manchester City and Arsenal.
United, despite having far less possession, played Manchester City off the park at Old Trafford in Carrick’s first game in charge. The Reds followed that up with a dramatic victory over Arsenal at the Emirates last Sunday.
Carrick’s current deal is only till the end of the current season, but talk has already begun over the possibility of him taking over on a permanent basis in the summer.
United will conduct a thorough assessment of the manager market before making a final decision, with names like Thomas Tuchel, Roberto De Zerbi and Oliver Glasner expected to come into the fray.
Wright disagrees with Neville over Carrick
Despite Carrick’s impressive start to life in the Old Trafford dugout, Gary Neville is of the opinion that he should not be considered for the permanent job.
“Michael shouldn’t get the job at the end of the season, in my opinion. And I’m saying this really unemotionally, right?” Neville said on the Stick to Football podcast.
“It’s nothing to do with what two weeks ago, where to be fair, I agree with Roy, that no one would have mentioned Michael for the job, right? If you’re going to earn your stripes and manage one of the biggest clubs in the world and handle the pressure that’s going to be thrown at you, I think you have to have that years of experience personally.”
Ian Wright responded to Neville’s comments by defending Carrick, claiming it was unfair to rule him out completely before having the chance to prove his is indeed capable of managing Manchester United. Wright claimed that Carrick should get the same chance that Ruben Amorim did.
“So why did Manchester United give it to Amorim? I’m not having that,” Wright said in response.
“If he goes in now and he’s proving that he can do it, off the back of this result, what are you talking about?
“He should get the opportunity to see if he can do it. If you’ve given it to Amorim.”
Wright is right
Ian Wright is 100% correct in his assessment of the situation. If between now and the end of the season, Michael Carrick proves he is capable of doing the job, he should keep it.
He did an excellent job at Middlesbrough in his first season, and whilst there was a steady decline in his final two seasons at the Riverside Stadium, that decline was in line with a decrease of quality in the squad.
He is an outstanding tactician when it comes to the in-possession side of the game. He now also has Steve Holland as an assistant who can take up a large part of the responsibility regarding out-of-possession tactics, a weakness in Carrick’s set-up that was cited following his spell at Middlesbrough.
In an ideal world, Carrick gets Manchester United in the top four playing a brand of football that can bring sustained long-term success. Him staying would also give the club continuity, something that is desperately needed. That being said, he has to first prove he can do it, because if he can’t, United will look elsewhere, and rightly so. He has started perfectly. It’s now about consistency.
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