Credit : Premier League's X
MANCHESTER, November 12, 2026 — Manchester United has confirmed that Michael Carrick has left his role as the club’s men’s first-team head coach, after what the club described as a disappointing start to the season. The Premier League reported the decision on Thursday, saying the club had confirmed the departure.
In a statement issued by the club and quoted by the Manchester Evening News, Sky News and The Guardian, United said: “Manchester United can confirm that Michael Carrick has departed his role as men’s first-team head coach.” The club said Carrick had rejoined in January and “guided the team to a third-placed Premier League finish by winning 12 out of the remaining 17 games of the 2025/26 season, accumulating the highest points tally in the league during that period.”
“After a disappointing start to the season, the club has come to the extremely difficult conclusion that a change is necessary in order to achieve our ambitions,” the statement said. It added: “Michael is, and always will be, a Manchester United legend. Just as he did as a player, he has conducted himself with the highest standards of dedication and professionalism throughout his time back with the club. His leadership and achievements last season will always be fondly remembered.” United said it intended to appoint a permanent successor as quickly as possible.
Carrick, 45, first returned to the head coach’s role on an interim basis in January 2026 and was later given a permanent contract after last season’s third-placed finish, Sky News reported. The same report said United had won only three of their first 15 matches in all competitions this season. The club’s statement did not set out a league position or name a successor.
Sky News also reported that Carrick was the seventh manager to leave United since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013, and that he was the first of two Premier League head coaches to depart on Thursday. Later on Thursday the Premier League said Crystal Palace had confirmed that Pierre Sage had left his role as manager. United did not comment on Palace’s decision, and the two departures were announced separately.
Reports that United was closing in on a deal to appoint Mauricio Pochettino, the head coach of the United States men’s national team, have not been confirmed by the club. The Associated Press, citing a person with knowledge of the situation, said United was hopeful of announcing an appointment before the United States’ coming fixtures, but that remains unverified. This story treats only the club’s own statement as confirmed.
Carrick’s playing career at Old Trafford is a matter of club record. After joining from Tottenham Hotspur in 2004 he made 464 appearances, scored 24 goals and won five Premier League titles, the FA Cup, two League Cups, the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Europa League and the FIFA Club World Cup, according to Manchester United. He later served on the first-team coaching staff under José Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, and had a spell as caretaker, before a two-and-a-half-year stint as head coach of Middlesbrough from October 2022.
The Manchester Evening News reported that Carrick was told of the decision in face-to-face talks at the club’s Carrington training ground on Thursday morning with chief executive Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox, who had returned from a meeting in Monaco with co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe. Those details come from that report, not from United’s statement.
Source: https://x.com/premierleague/status/2120831637231391010. Club statement as reported by the Manchester Evening News, Sky News and The Guardian, November 12, 2026. Playing career from Manchester United. Additional context from Sky News, the Manchester Evening News and the Associated Press, all attributed.
Credit : Premier League’s X
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