Manchester United stick with Michael Carrick despite poor start
Manchester United will keep Michael Carrick in charge for their match against Chelsea after a poor run, with the club expected to give him more time to turn results around.
How it was covered
- BBC News carried 55% of the airtime.
- Channel 5, BBC Two, Channel 4, GB News and ITV: not found in tracked broadcasts.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story. Facts only one channel reported are attributed to it.
Manchester United will keep Michael Carrick in charge for Saturday's match against Chelsea despite a run that had left his position under serious threat. The decision came after the 3-0 home defeat by Bournemouth, a result that many expected to end his tenure. Carrick took training as normal on the morning the news emerged and has been given the chance to turn the situation around. It is understood the club will give him more time to improve results.
United are 16th in the Premier League and are without a win in eight matches in all competitions. They are one point above the relegation zone. They have not won a Premier League game since August and have only one win from their opening eight league games. They have also struggled in Europe and were knocked out of the League Cup. The club has looked at potential replacements, including former Newcastle boss Eddie Howe, so Carrick's long-term future remains uncertain.
The immediate pressure is not only on Carrick. Fans largely backed him during the Bournemouth defeat, applauding him off the pitch, while booing the players and directing anger at the club hierarchy over a lack of investment in the squad. That support may have helped him survive, but results must improve quickly.
Andy Mitten, editor of the United We Stand fanzine, said Carrick deserves some blame for the slump but that the problems run deeper. He pointed to the players, the executives and the ownership structure, including the Glazer family's leveraged buyout 21 years ago and the debt that has followed. He said United have been stuck in a cycle of hiring and sacking managers since Sir Alex Ferguson stepped down in 2013, and that stronger, wealthier rivals have made a sustained title challenge harder.
Carrick did well last season to lead United to third place and Champions League football, but the team's current form has raised questions about how long the club can wait for a revival. For now, he has the Chelsea game to show that the decision to keep him was right.
Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reported by all 3 channels | |||
| Manchester United are 16th in the table and have looked at possible replacements, including Eddie Howe. | Reported by BBC News | ||
| Manchester United were 16th in the Premier League, one point above the relegation zone, having not won in eight matches in all competitions and only one of their opening eight league games, with no league win since August. | Reported by BBC One | ||
| Manchester United will keep Michael Carrick in charge for Saturday's match against Chelsea. | |||
| Reported by a few · 2 channels | |||
| Manchester United lost 3-0 to Bournemouth in their most recent match. | Not reported by BBC News | Reported by Sky News | |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
The coverage led on the immediate decision and treated it as a surprise, with the correspondent saying Carrick is safe for now but his future is in doubt. It stressed that Carrick took training as normal, that United are 16th and that the club has looked at Eddie Howe as a possible replacement. It also noted fan backing for Carrick and anger towards the players and hierarchy.
- “So safe for the moment, but his future very much in doubt.”
- “In fact, Carrick took training as normal this morning, and it's now emerged that he will be given the chance to turn the situation around”
- “United are down in 16th place in the table”
Sky framed the news around surprise that Carrick had survived, with a pundit saying they were happy but had no idea how the next weeks would go. It gave the basic facts of the Chelsea match and the poor results, including the 3-0 Bournemouth defeat and the winless run. It offered less context on the club's ownership and structural problems than the BBC News interview.
- “Michael Carrick will remain in charge of Manchester United for their game against Chelsea on Saturday.”
- “I'm really surprised that ultimately Michael is still in a job but I'm happy with it”
- “United are without winning eight matches in all competitions they're just one point above the eradication zone in the Premier League.”
The BBC News segment led on its own understanding that United would stick with Carrick and then widened the story into the club's deeper problems. The fanzine editor interview focused on fan support for Carrick, blame on players and executives, the Glazer debt and a long cycle of short-term managerial changes. It also set out the poor league form and last season's third-place finish.
- “the BBC understands that Manchester United will stick with Michael Carrick despite their poor start to the Premier League season”
- “these are difficult times for Manchester United the team have not won a Premier League game since August”
- “they actually cheered Michael Carrick off the pitch even though it's a struggle and they absolutely did not cheer the players off the pitch”
Who was on air
People and organisations each channel put on air while covering this story. Channels' own presenters and reporters are not listed. Names as transcribed, and the list can miss people.
- 18:52 GMT
Andy Mitten, football journalist and editor of United We Stand Fanzine
The World Today with Maryam · Tue 27 Oct
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.