Michael Carrick was appointed as Manchester United’s permanent head coach on Friday, but he was far from the only option the club considered.
The 44-year-old returned to the Red Devils on January 13 to take up the interim head coach role after the dismissal of Ruben Amorim.
Carrick had vast experience at Old Trafford, having played 464 times for the club, coached there under a previous regime and even taken caretaker charge for three games in 2021.
However, with his only full time managerial experience coming in the Championship with Middlesbrough, it seemed very unlikely that Carrick would stay on beyond his interim role.
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Club legends Gary Neville and Roy Keane even said there was no way that Carrick should be given the permanent job, no matter how well he did over the rest of the season.
Four months on and Carrick has led Manchester United to a comfortable third place finish, playing some attractive football and he has got the gig on a two-year contract.
The Manchester United hierarchy looked at a number of other possible candidates, though, with at least six other managers in the running.
The Athletic report that a trio of international managers were on Manchester United’s radar, but the upcoming World Cup made any moves difficult.
England boss Thomas Tuchel has long been admired at Old Trafford and he was ‘checked on’ in January, but signed a new contract with the Three Lions.
Another possible candidate, Carlo Ancelotti, signed a new deal with Brazil, while Germany’s Julian Nagelsmann was unable to enter discussions due to World Cup commitments.
Manchester United also looked at managers who have impressed in the Premier League, specificially Bournemouth’s Andoni Iraola and Aston Villa’s Unai Emery.
While Iraola has been very impressive with the Cherries, the Red Devils chiefs thought it too big a leap to move to Old Trafford.
Emery would have cost as much as £20m to sign from Villa and there were concerns that he could not replicate his success at a club where he would not be able to exert as much control as he enjoys at Villa Park.
Paris Saint-Germain’s Luis Enrique was also considered, but the Spaniard isdoing a superb job in France, with the chance of winning back-to-back Champions League finals this weekend.
PSG had no intention of letting him go and are still working on a new contract for him to keep him at the club beyond 2027.
With certain options out of their reach and others considered to have significant downsides, Manchester United have stuck with Carrick to lead them into next season.
‘From the moment that I arrived here 20 years ago, I felt the magic of Manchester United. Carrying the responsibility of leading our special football club fills me with immense pride,’ he said after his appointment was confirmed.
‘Throughout the past five months, this group of players have shown they can reach the standards of resilience, togetherness and determination that we demand here.’