Michael Carrick has been told he only has a matter of weeks to save his Manchester United job after another winless outing. United have now gone six matches across all competitions without a victory, with the Red Devils having managed just two wins all season. Only one of those came in the Premier League, with United claiming seven points from seven league matches.
Pressure Mounts on Carrick
The pressure has been mounting on United boss Carrick, with calls for INEOS to sack the ex-Middlesbrough manager. The fixture list doesn't relent for United, given Como, Bournemouth, Chelsea, Roma and Aston Villa are to come before the November international break. First game back after that? The small matter of Liverpool away.
United currently find themselves 13th in the table, 14 points off leaders Manchester City, who boast a 100 per cent record after seven games. The three-time European champions are just two points off the drop zone.
Neville's Stark Warning
Ex-United ace Gary Neville has sent a stark warning to his former team-mate. Neville outlined when Carrick needs to turn United's fortunes around before INEOS' bigwigs pull the plug. He told Sky Sports: "Fifth is a must for Michael Carrick to continue to grow and Manchester United continue to grow with investment."
"If they're 13th in January, he's got a problem because then you are what you are. Whereas I think it's still early enough, seven points from seven games, to say, 'okay, still early in the season'. You can't say that after 15 games."
"It has to change in the next few weeks: Bournemouth is really important and Chelsea away. And how he manages the games in between that."
Fifth Place a Must
Adding: "You've got to say fifth. You know that anything less than fifth is going to be a disappointment and a dropping standard from the start of the season where everybody expected them to finish."
"And at the moment, they're well short of that because you look at Brighton, Liverpool, Aston Villa - they look like they're picking up a little bit. It's difficult."
If Carrick is sacked, Eddie Howe has been touted as one of the most likely appointments to replace him. Fabian Hurzeler, Antonio Conte and Julian Nagelsmann have all been mooted as potential candidates.
