Keith Wyness: Michael Carrick is ‘nailed on’ to be named permanent Man United manager
Michael Carrick will get the Manchester United job on a permanent basis if the club qualify for the Champions League.
That is according to ex-Everton, Aston Villa, and Aberdeen chief executive Keith Wyness, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, who believes Sir Jim Ratcliffe owes one to Carrick.
Carrick has stepped into the Man United dugout initially until the end of the season after the club decided to sack Ruben Amorim in January.
The former Man United midfielder remains unbeaten as interim boss, with a 1-0 win at Everton continuing to cement their position in the Premier League‘s top four.
Man United fans were ‘really angry’ before Michael Carrick arrival
Everton’s former chief Keith Wyness – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – believes Man United’s form under Carrick has acted as cover for Ratcliffe, who is proving to be a polarising figure at the club.
Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast, Wyness thinks it would take a “collapse in results” for Carrick not to get the job.
He told Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast: “Carrick has given Ratcliffe a lot of cover, by the way, in the PR and the media, by what he’s done, and a lot of cover from the fans who are getting really angry about the way things were going under Amorim.
“So I think, you know, Ratcliffe owes Carrick one, in a sense. I think it would take a lot for him, it would take a real collapse in results for him not to get the job.
“But I think it would be nailed on certainty if he gets Champions League qualification. Don’t forget this year it looks like five clubs will be there. So United have got every chance of getting that done.”
- Read More: ‘What Ruben Amorim must be thinking’: The ‘brutal’ truth about Michael Carrick’s Man United turnaround
Man United chasing Middlesborough star
If Carrick does get the Man United job, then the 44-year-old could look to reunite himself with Championship star Hayden Hackney.
Carrick managed Hackney during his time at Middlesborough, and that relationship could give Man United the edge in the race to sign the 23-year-old.
Hackney is a crucial player in Middlesborough’s hopes of promotion to the Premier League this season with four goals and five assists in 33 games.