Michael Carrick will take charge of his first match as caretaker manager of Manchester United tonight without knowing how many games he has in the hotseat.
We all know that the constant speculation over United’s next manager won’t go away until the day one is appointed. Ed Woodward should be aware that appointing an interim boss shows more incompetence on his behalf, especially with PSG manager Mauricio Pochettino waiting in the wings to do what Ole Gunnar Solskjaer couldn’t.
It’s not something I expect Carrick to do either – I don’t think anyone will be putting his name into the hat. He should build on his coaching experience over the coming days or weeks before moving on and challenging himself at another club.
Right now, however, our biggest concern is the game against Villarreal as the Reds look to seal their place in this season’s knockout stages.
Here’s the starting XI: De Gea, AWB, Lindelof, Maguire, Telles; McTominay, Fred, Sancho, Van de Beek, Martial; Ronaldo.
📋 Your United line-up to take on Villarreal…
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) November 23, 2021
A surprise start for Telles and Martial – as well as Van de Beek – but we are happy to see the Netherlands international from the start.
A win would guarantee United’s spot but a draw could be enough if Atalanta and Young Boys can’t find a winner in the other Group F match.
