Sir Jim Ratcliffe is understood to favour Eddie Howe as Manchester United's next head coach, with Michael Carrick's position increasingly precarious following a winless run of eight matches. The pressure intensified after a 3-0 home defeat to Bournemouth at the weekend, leaving the club's boss without a victory and struggling at Old Trafford.
INEOS and Ratcliffe face another challenging decision over the club's future leadership, with several specific names heading the running to assume the managerial role. Julian Nagelsmann, Eddie Howe and Antonio Conte have all emerged as possible successors to Carrick should he be dismissed.
Board split over Carrick successor
Ratcliffe's preference for Howe comes despite the former Newcastle manager expressing his intention to "take a break" from football following his departure from the club in the summer. United's co-owner prefers appointing an English manager, after previously championing efforts to recruit former England boss Gareth Southgate.
There is currently a split among United's board members over who should be appointed if Carrick is dismissed. Director of football Jason Wilcox is said to favour Howe, while head of recruitment Christopher Vivell is keen to reunite with former Germany and Bayern Munich manager Nagelsmann. Ratcliffe appears inclined to back Wilcox.
Howe's availability as a free agent makes him an appealing candidate, but Newcastle would still require a significant compensation package.
Howe's coaching staff demand
One possible condition for Howe accepting a position at Old Trafford would be the manager installing his own coaching staff. Howe has consistently shown loyalty to those within his trusted circle and has previously rejected opportunities for that reason.
Howe, 48, was linked with the Celtic position in 2021 when he demanded the right to appoint his own coaching team. Celtic's unwillingness to accommodate this resulted in the prospective move breaking down.
"I felt that if I was to come into a pressured job like [Celtic], I needed to go in with a sense of stability," he told The Athletic in 2022. "I could have recruited new staff, but then you're working each other out and there's a transition process where it probably takes three, four, five months. That's five months too late. I needed my staff with me and we couldn't get them together."
Howe's former Newcastle assistant, Jason Tindall, has earned a reputation for his animated presence on Premier League touchlines. Tindall had previously served alongside Howe at Bournemouth before their reunion at St James' Park five years ago. Additional long-standing members of Howe's Newcastle backroom team include Graeme Jones, Stephen Purches and Simon Weatherstone.
