Neville: Wins Won’t Force Manchester United Into Carrick Appointment Now

Gary Neville has reiterated that Manchester United will not allow a surge of victories to fast-track Michael Carrick into the manager’s chair, insisting the club’s hierarchy will stick to a methodical end-of-season review before making any long-term decision.

Carrick’s fourth consecutive win since taking interim charge – a 2-0 Premier League defeat of 10-man Tottenham on Saturday – lifted United to within three points of third-placed Aston Villa and stretched the former midfielder’s personal record to six wins from seven matches at Old Trafford, including his brief 2021 caretaker stint. Yet, speaking on The Gary Neville Podcast, the former club captain revealed he has sought direct clarification from United officials and was told the next appointment will be dictated by process, not results.

“What United have said is they’re not going to be bounced into, irrespective of wins or draws or losses on the pitch in this next couple of months, making an appointment,” Neville explained. “They’re going to wait until the end of the season.”

United have already begun compiling data on external candidates, with Neville welcoming the proactive stance. “They’ve started the process of speaking to and looking at other managers, building all the sorts of data and analysing who should be the next manager of the football club,” he said. “If Michael at that point makes himself available for the job, he would go into what would be a process versus the likes of Thomas Tuchel and all the others that are going to become available in the summer. I think that’s fair.”

Neville, who praised Carrick for restoring belief in a 4-4-1-1 system and transforming performances from “shocking” to “fantastic”, believes the resurgence has handed the club an unexpected luxury: Champions League qualification may be decided before a new manager is chosen. “If they win another four or five games then they’re almost emphatically in the Champions League,” he added. “It’d be a great position to be in by the time the final decision is made.”

For now, Carrick’s sole focus remains sustaining momentum on the pitch, while United’s power brokers resist external pressure and continue their off-pitch search.