Manchester United Interim Managers Compared — Where Does Michael Carrick Stand?

Michael Carrick will be appointed as the next interim manager of Manchester United Football Club till June 2026. The former United player will take over from Darren Fletcher, who managed the club for two games after the sacking of Ruben Amorim on Jan. 5.

There were reports that former manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was close to returning to the club in an interim basis, but his former assistant at United has won the favour of the both co-owners, the Glazers and the INEOS Group.

This will be Carrick’s second stint as an interim/caretaker manager of United. He briefly took charge from Nov. 21, 2021 to Dec. 2, 2021 after Solskjaer’s sacking.

In all, six managers have taken charge of the club on an interim/caretaker basis since legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson retired in May 2013. Five of those six have been former players of Manchester United and almost all were teammates with each other at some point.

Both expert football journalists, David Ornstein and Fabrizio Romano have posted on X about the imminent announcement from Manchester United.

1. Ryan Giggs

Ryan Giggs was announced as United's interim manager after David Moyes was sacked nine months into his six-year contract in April 2013. Giggs was still a player and took charge for the final four games of the season.

The club's record appearance maker won two, drew one and lost one of his four matches. He was soon appointed as the club's assistant manager after Dutchman Louis van Gaal was announced as the new boss.

2. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer

Solskjaer was appointed as the caretake manager on Dec. 19, 2018 after Portuguese coach Jose Mourinho was sacked after a poor first half to the season. Solskjaer had an incredible start to his stint as caretaker boss as United won eight matches in-a-row.

The Norwegian guided the club to a barely-believable comeback win over Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal second-leg tie. United trailed 2-0 from the first leg at Old Trafford to then upset the French giants 3-1 in Paris.

This helped him get the job permanently on March 28, 2019. He helped the club to win 14 of the 19 matches under his caretaker role with two draws and three losses only. He had an stunning win percentage of 74%.

3. Michael Carrick

Solskjaer's stint as permanent manager wasn't as plain sailing, with his eventual win percentage dropping to 54.17%. After a poor run of results, he was sacked and his assistant Carrick was appointed as the caretaker boss.

Carrick only managed three matches and won two of those and drew one. Ralf Rangnick was then appointed as the next interim manager till the end of the 2021-22 season.

4. Ralf Rangnick

German coach Rangnick is touted as the father of Gegenpressing or high-press football. He was seen as what United needed at that point. But his stint was anything but smooth.

A fractured dressing room huffed and puffed till the end of the season as United finished sixth in the Premier League despite having the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes, Paul Pogba and David de Gea in their ranks.

Rangnick was unable to imprint his style and he wasn't offered any role at the club, which he was reportedly keen on. At the end, he was at the helm in 29 matches and the team only won 11 of those. There were 11 draws and 10 defeats as well.

5. Ruud van Nistelrooy

United's cultish legendary striker Ruud van Nistelrooy was already the assistant coach at the club when Dutch compatriot Erik ten Hag lost his job on Oct. 28, 2024.

Van Nistelrooy only took charge for four matches and he won three of those and drew one. As Ruben Amorim was appointed as the new head coach on Nov. 11, 2024, Van Nistelrooy left the club by mutual consent.

6. Darren Fletcher

Fletcher was the latest former United player who was appointed as the manager in either an interim or caretaker basis. He drew one and lost one of his two matches.