Sir Jim Ratcliffe should lastly get a Man Utd resolution proper with Michael Carrick name
Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe needs to break with tradition when it comes to Michael Carrick and make the right managerial decision for once
Michael Carrick had done more than enough to deserve the Manchester United job on a permanent basis (Image: Ash Donelon, Manchester United via Getty Images)
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s track record of appointing managers has been as laughable as Watford’s. Since purchasing a stake in Manchester United in 2024, Ratcliffe has stumbled from one bad decision to another.
Let’s look at the evidence. After sacking Erik ten Hag in October 2024, he made Ruud Van Nistelrooy caretaker boss. For what reason, no-one but Ratcliffe knows. In between, he had tried but failed to lure Thomas Tuchel to Old Trafford, but the German got bored of the recruitment process.
Van Nistelrooy lasted less than a fortnight, before Ratcliffe gave the job to Ruben Amorim when he didn’t want it. Amorim went on to create more bad records than Black Lace, during 14 failed and fractured months at the helm.
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Ratcliffe then sacked Amorim, handed the reigns to Darren Fletcher while working on his next masterplan, and watched the Scotsman fail to win either of his two games in charge.
But then Ratcliffe discovered that if someone chucks enough mud at a wall, some of it will stick at some stage. And it looks like Ratcliffe has struck oil, when it comes to Michael Carrick.
But the question now is, can Ratcliffe cash in and break with recent tradition, to make the right call for once? The scenario is quite simple for United’s owners.
Unless Luis Enrique can be persuaded to leave Paris Saint Germain, Carrick should be appointed on a permanent basis. And appointed in the coming weeks, so he can have as much time as possible to prepare for the challenges of next season.
A campaign which will see United compete in the Champions League. Enrique is the best manager on the planet right now. Before the week is complete, he could have led PSG to back-to-back Champions League finals – and the chance to defend the title.
He ticks all the boxes, and Carrick doesn’t. Mainly because he’s not had the chance to, yet. But Enrique is not available – and Carrick is.
And the one question Ratcliffe & Co have to answer is a simple one. Is there a reason not to hand the role to Carrick? The simple answer is no.
He’s done what he was asked to do, which was to get United back into the Champions League. With three games to spare.
He’s rescued the career of Kobbie Mainoo. He’s turned Benjamin Sesko into one of the most productive strikers in the top flight. He’s replaced chaos with calm, class and composure.
He’s become the first English manager to win eight or more of his first nine home games in the Premier League. He’s won more games in less than four months, than Amorim won in the whole of last season.
He’s now beaten Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea, Aston Villa and Liverpool. And he’s transformed the whole environment at a club, to such an extent that he’s earned the greatest compliment of all from Matheus Cunha.
“When Michael came, he came with magic! Alex Ferguson vibes,” said Cunha. “He talks so much about his [Fergie’s] team, the conquering team. This feeling comes to us, we feel so happy with the information. At the end of the day, this is just the start of the journey, it’s the beginning – a beautiful beginning.”
High praise indeed. But it might only become ‘beautiful’, if Ratcliffe can stop making ugly decisions and take the right one for once.
