On Monday morning, when it was widely expected that an announcement ending Carrick’s tenure would be made, a senior United figure said calm and a clear mind would be needed to navigate the turbulence at Old Trafford. Carrick had been treading water since the crushing 4-1 defeat at Como on October 21, one of the worst European nights in the club’s history. Respected United supporter and editor of United We Stand fanzine Andy Mitten, who interviewed chief executive Omar Berrada on behalf of the club last time. June described the performance as “an affront to the name of Manchester United”. In addition to the catastrophic nature of the performance, captain Bruno Fernandes publicly questioned Carrick’s tactics and his coaches’ inability to detect what was going wrong. Fernandes’ comments came a week after defender Lisandro Martínez said he expected more investment in the team and – directing attention to Jason Wilcox – “more from our technical director”. dilemma for the United hierarchy. Feeling that it would seem reactionary and impulsive to remove Carrick based on the negativity of one match, United kept the 45-year-old for the Bournemouth game, only for that to turn sour thanks to a performance that was arguably worse than that in Italy. Fernandes played no role and was left on the bench. The Portuguese star later liked an Instagram post that included the caption: “Never push a loyal person to the point where they no longer care.” Late on Sunday night, BBC Sport believed that no final decision had been made to sack Carrick, and that the trial would continue until Monday. There was no decision then either. The United players who started against Bournemouth had the day off but, interestingly, Fernandes and Carrick were both at Carrington. Fernandes was receiving pre-planned treatment while Carrick watched an Under-21 match behind closed doors. Also on the training ground were Berrada and Wilcox, discussing what the immediate future should look like. Sources say it is inconceivable that minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe and the Glazer family would not have been part of those discussions. It was too late when it became clear that there would be no update on Carrick’s future. His arrival at Carrington at 07:30 GMT on Tuesday was a sign that he would take up training as normal and, along with Fernandes and several other players, Carrick signed autographs and posed for photographs with a group of fans invited to the training ground that day. Four hours later, United sources confirmed he would be in charge at Stamford Bridge.
