Carrick, Solskjaer contacted over Man Utd interim role
Manchester United have begun talking to external candidates as they look for an interim manager to take charge until the end of the season, with three former Old Trafford favourites in the mix for a possible return after Ruben Amorim's departure.Sky Sports News has been told that Michael Carrick and Ole Gunnar Solksjaer have both been spoken to, informally, about the possibility of them taking charge until the end of the season, alongside the current caretaker Darren Fletcher. It's expected that other candidates will also be called before any decision is taken.
While the current focus is on finding an interim boss, the club haven't ruled out the possibility of making a substantive appointment, if they decide the right coach is available. For that, United are considering a much wider pool.
Director of football Jason Wilcox is leading the process for United and following the initial, informal conversations with candidates, he is expected to conduct more formal interviews before making a recommendation in the coming days. Any final decision will be sanctioned by Sir Jim Ratcliffe.No timescales have been set, but it's thought the club's bosses would like to have someone in place before the Manchester derby on January 17. Fletcher is expected to be in charge for the next two matches, against Burnley in the Premier League on Wednesday and Brighton in the FA Cup on Sunday.
Fletcher himself is a contender for the interim role, but United's hierarchy have viewed him as a promising option for the future, because of his lack of first-team coaching experience right now. Nevertheless, we've been told Fletcher has always been close with United's players, and the squad has been impressed by the early work he has done with them so far, with morale around the camp pretty high.
Wilcox has already had conversations with former Old Trafford favourites Michael Carrick and Ole Gunnar Solksjaer about the interim head coach position, with both seen as good possibilities to come into a club they know well. Both are currently out of work and available without the need to pay compensation.
Glasner, Howe speak on United links
As talks continue for an interim boss, among those linked with the permanent role are Crystal Palace's Oliver Glasner and Newcastle's Eddie Howe.Glasner has six months left on his deal at Selhurst Park but shut down any talk of the position during a press conference ahead of Palace's game against Aston Villa on Wednesday, live on Sky Sports."I am Crystal Palace manager. It's wasted time for you to ask any more questions. I don't talk about any other club other than Crystal Palace," he said.
Howe, meanwhile, also reiterated his commitment to Newcastle."I'm 100 per cent here, working as hard as I can, head down, ignoring all the stuff that you guys write, good or bad, because it's irrelevant," he said."It's about today's work and trying to prepare the team as well as we can for Leeds [on Wednesday], so that will never change from my perspective, my commitment to my work and my job."As long as I'm happy and able to express myself in the best way that I can to help the team, nothing will change."Asked if there was anything which could tempt him away from St James' Park, Howe replied: "No, not at this current time."The most important thing for me is happiness in the role, happiness in the job, the relationships I have with the people around me. Now that's not always been consistently good and things can change at any football club."But, at the moment, I am very happy."Man Utd's next five fixturesWednesday: Burnley (A) - Premier League, kick-off 8.15pm, live on Sky SportsSunday: Brighton (H) - FA Cup third round, kick-off 4.30pmJanuary 17: Man City (H) - Premier League, kick-off 12.30pm, live on Sky SportsJanuary 25: Arsenal (A) - Premier League, kick-off 4.30pm, live on Sky SportsFebruary 1: Fulham (H) - Premier League, kick-off 2pm, live on Sky Sports
