MANCHESTER: Manchester United has turned to former player Michael Carrick to salvage its imploding season.
Carrick was hired Tuesday as head coach until the end of the season after Ruben Amorim was fired last week.
The former England midfielder won five Premier League titles and the Champions League during a trophy-laden playing career at Old Trafford. He was also an assistant coach at United and had an unbeaten three-game spell as interim manager when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was fired in 2021.
On this occasion, Carrick was selected ahead of Solskjaer, who was also interviewed for the role.
I know what it takes to succeed here; my focus is now on helping the players to reach the standards that we expect at this incredible club, which we know that this group is more than capable of producing
Michael Carrick
By appointing Carrick on a temporary basis, United is giving itself time to find a long-term replacement for Amorim, who became the sixth permanent manager or coach to be discarded by the storied club after more than a decade of decline since Alex Ferguson retired in 2013.
It is possible Carrick could put himself in contention if he impresses during the 17 remaining games this season. And while he has only initially been appointed for the short-term, it was notable that United did not describe him as interim when announcing his contract.