Gary Neville believes Michael Carrick will be sacked as Manchester United manager within 24 hours of their 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth, but he has pointed the finger of blame at the club's leadership structure rather than at his former team-mate.
United dropped to 16th place in the Premier League after the loss at Old Trafford on Sunday. Carrick, who was appointed permanent boss in the summer, has overseen just two wins all season, with seven points from eight league games representing the club's worst start to a campaign since 1986/87.
Neville criticises United's leadership
Speaking on Sky Sports after the match, Neville claimed Carrick was a "dead man walking" before the game even kicked off. He criticised key figures Jason Wilcox and Omar Berrada, who were inside Old Trafford to witness the defeat.
"The fans have turned on Jason Wilcox in the second half," Neville said. "Jason Wilcox shouldn't be in the position. He's a technical director who has had an academy director background, making the journey up beneath a sporting director and all of a sudden he's making the biggest decisions at one of the biggest football clubs in the world. He's been thrust into a position ahead of his time.
"Omar Berrada is someone who has not been in a CEO position before in a football club. There's a lack of experience generally in the roles they've got and it's all coming home to roost again."
Neville added that United executives had reportedly been sounding out replacements, with Wilcox and Christopher Vivell torn over whether it would be Eddie Howe or Julian Nagelsmann, and that both managers had been spoken to.
Carrick's response and Carragher's view
Carrick said he was "not expecting anything" when asked if he could be sacked on Sunday night, but appeared emotional while clapping the fans as he walked off the pitch.
"It's a tough situation, there's no hiding from it," Carrick told Sky Sports. "But what it looks like and what's next, I really don't know. I will always do what's best for this football club, I've said it all along and I don't change that now.
"I love what I do, I love the position I'm in. I feel the responsibility but we'll have to wait and see."
Jamie Carragher suggested Carrick would prefer to be relieved of his duties. "He wants to be changed. He does," Carragher said on Sky Sports. "He doesn't want to be sitting in the dugout again for Manchester United with those players. He doesn't.
"What we're watching now is a situation where it becomes untenable for everybody. Nobody is actually enjoying watching Michael Carrick at the moment.
"Can you imagine going into the training ground tomorrow and facing Bruno Fernandes after not bringing him on in that situation? He doesn't want to be involved in that. He wants to be put out of his misery tonight."
