With one victory in their first 10 Premier League matches, Manchester United have made their worst start to a top-flight campaign since the 1986-87 season.
They are 18th in the table, one point above bottom club Crystal Palace.
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United directors will meet in Monaco on Wednesday to discuss Michael Carrick’s future as his 10-month spell as head coach comes under major scrutiny.
If the 45-year-old former player departs, it would mean an eighth permanent boss for the Red Devils since Sir Alex Ferguson retired 13 years ago.
That would be as many managerial changes as they have made across the previous 68 years dating back to Sir Matt Busby’s appointment in 1945.
BBC Sport takes a look at the leading candidates who could replace Carrick.
Major trophies won: 1 Ligue 1, 1 French Cup
Premier League record: P294, W150; Win percentage: 51; Points per game ratio (PPG): 1.77
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Did you know: Pochettino averaged 1.89 points per game during his spell at Tottenham, the best ratio of any Spurs manager to have taken charge of 25 or more Premier League games.
United’s long-standing interest in the Argentine, 54, dates back a decade.
At Spurs, he moulded their best team in a generation, but ultimately came up short of winning a trophy, losing both the Champions League and League Cup finals, and posted second and third-placed finishes. Silverware did come at Paris St-Germain with a league title, but a spell at Chelsea proved tougher with a League Cup final defeat by Liverpool in 2024.
Having led the USA to the last 16 of the World Cup on home soil he signed a new contract taking him up to the 2030 tournament. Pochettino has an exciting group of young players to work with for the national team – led by Manchester City-bound 17-year-old Cavan Sullivan – but he has always made it clear he has unfinished business in the Premier League.
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A reported buyout clause in Pochettino’s contract is worth $10million (£7.44m), while it is also understood to contain clauses that would allow him to leave for specific high-profile jobs.
Major trophies won: 1 Bundesliga
Premier League record: N/A
Did you know: Only Hansi Flick (88.9%) has a better win percentage by a Bayern Munich manager in the Champions League than Nagelsmann’s 83.3%.
Nagelsmann first impressed with his work at Hoffenheim, where he became the youngest head coach in Bundesliga history aged 28, leading them from relegation struggles to the Champions League.
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He followed that by taking RB Leipzig to a Champions League semi-final in 2020 and Bayern Munich understandably came calling.
But despite winning the Bundesliga title in his first season he reportedly fell out with key players and did not survive a full second season.
In 2023, Nagelsmann took charge of a Germany side in transition, and they were narrowly beaten in the quarter-finals of Euro 2024 by eventual winners Spain, but stepped down in the summer after Die Mannschaft were humbled by Paraguay in the World Cup last 32.
Still only 39, his reputation may have taken a bit of a hit, but the German is still regarded as one of Europe’s best coaches. Manchester United’s director of recruitment Christopher Vivell also knows him well, having worked together at RB Leipzig.
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Major trophies won: 1 League Cup
Premier League record: P369 W140; Win percentage: 37.9; PPG: 1.36
Did you know: Eddie Howe (five) is one of only three managers with five or more wins against Mikel Arteta in all competitions, along with Pep Guardiola (11) and Jurgen Klopp (six).
His body of work in English football needs little introduction having led Bournemouth to the top flight for the first time in their history, before he confirmed his place in Newcastle folklore with their first major domestic trophy since lifting the FA Cup in 1955.
The League Cup final triumph over Liverpool was one of the greatest days in the club’s history, while he also secured two top-five finishes to take the club back into the Champions League for the first time in 20 years.
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Howe, 48, left in the summer after an underwhelming 12th-placed finish last term and Newcastle would only be due a a relatively small amount of compensation should he be tempted by the Old Trafford job.
Major trophies won: 5 Serie A, 1 Premier League, 1 FA Cup
Premier League record: P132, W83; Win percentage: 62.9; PPG: 2.03
Did you know: Chelsea won 30 of their 38 Premier League matches as they claimed the title in Antonio Conte’s first season in charge in 2016-17.
A serial winner, Conte’s managerial credentials are not in doubt.
He left Napoli of his own accord this summer just 12 months after delivering only the fourth top-flight title in their history.
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That added to Serie A triumphs at Juventus (three) and Inter Milan, and spells at Chelsea and Tottenham.
Conte, 57, would appear to be a no-brainer of a choice to take over at United, but could the Italian’s fiery nature and history of falling out with clubs count against him?
His last stint in English football ended under a cloud of controversy as he left Tottenham in 2023 following criticism of the players and the club’s culture.
While he had success at Chelsea, Conte also reportedly clashed with both players and the board.
Major trophies won: 5 Europa League, 1 Ligue 1, 2 French Cups, 2 French League Cups
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Premier League record: P200, W101; Win percentage: 50.5; PPG: 1.75
Did you know: Unai Emery has the best Premier League win percentage (51%) and points per game ratio (1.75) of any permanent Aston Villa boss.
Vastly experienced, the Spaniard’s stock is at an all-time high courtesy of the superb job he has done since taking over at Villa in October 2022.
Having taken the club into the European Cup/Champions League for the first time for 41 years, the 55-year-old then ended their 30-year wait for silverware with success in last season’s Europa League.
Despite having lost the spine of his team over the summer, Emery’s new-look side are finding their feet again and the chances of him leaving for United look even slimmer with recent news he is expected to sign a new contract.
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Major trophies won: N/A
Premier League record: P29, W14; Win percentage: 48.3; PPG: 1.76
Did you know: After his initial appointment as United’s interim boss in January, Michael Carrick had the most wins (12) and points (39) of any Premier League manager during the rest of the 2025-26 season.
Still clinging on to his job in the Old Trafford hot seat, could United’s hierarchy actually decide to keep faith with Carrick?
After such a brilliant start and end to the season following his arrival in January, the wheels have come off spectacularly this term with only three wins from 15 matches in all competitions.
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His team have at least shown fight with comebacks in recent games to beat Roma and salvage a point in a 4-4 draw with Aston Villa, but their overall stats are damning and the outlook doesn’t look good for the 45-year-old, who won five Premier League titles and the Champions League as a United player.
The club are in the relegation zone and 18th is their lowest position after 10 games of a season for 40 years. It is also only the second time they have gone eight Premier League games without a victory.
