Since Ruben Amorim was sacked from the role of head coach at Manchester United after 14 months in charge, United and INEOS have been scrambling to find an alternative.
Darren Fletcher has been brought in from his post as under 18's manager in United's academy to act as a stopgap in the managerial role. But with one point from two games, including United embarrassingly losing to Brighton and crashing out of the FA Cup, a manager clearly needs to be brought in.
Multiple managers have been linked to the role full-time, most notably Oliver Glasner, but any long-term options for United will not be available until the end of the season. It leaves United in a tough spot that requires another temporary solution; an interim manager, to take over from the caretaker, but eventually hand over to a full-time head coach in the summer.
A two-horse race has emerged over the last week as United reportedly conduct interviews for the interim manager role. The two candidates are reportedly Michael Carrick and Ole Gunnar Solskjær.
Solskjær has seemingly been gaining more traction in the past week, especially on social media, as many look back on Solskjær's past time as Man United manager fondly. Solskjær was manager at Old Trafford between 2019 and 2021, and oversaw a positive time at Old Trafford, where United played exciting and counter-attacking football.
Solskjær was eventually sacked after a poor run of results, but now United are reportedly considering him again. Now, though, it seems that it is Michael Carrick who is becoming the frontrunner for the United job.
Fabrizio Romano confirms rumour about United managerial race
Rumours have swirled this week that Carrick is being considered for the role, potentially on his own or as part of Solskjær's coaching team. But the tide has turned over the past 48 hours, and now it seems as though Carrick is now most likely to appointed.
Fabrizio Romano has now reported that Carrick "has accepted all conditions of Manchester United contract proposal", and has said the "agreement is almost done". The club hope to have Carrick settled in the club in time for him to take charge at the Manchester derby this weekend.
Michael Carrick has taken charge of Manchester United before, as he was part of Solskjær's coaching team and took over as caretaker manager following Solskjær's sacking. He was manager for three games, which included a victory over Arsenal, and was then replaced with Ralf Rangnick.
Carrick went on to be manager of Middlesborough in 2022, and took charge of a side that was flirting with relegation and lead them into the play-off places, although his side eventually lost in the semi-finals. He was eventually sacked in 2025, but enjoyed a mildly successful stint as head coach.