Manchester United have signed a two-and-a-half-year contract to hire Mauricio Pochettino as their new manager, with the announcement on Friday – and Gary Lineker having his say has already predicted how long the Argentine will stay at the club.
Man United finally released Michael Carrick from his duties on Thursday morning, even though his sacking had been publicly discussed in the media since Monday.
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Jason Wilcox and Omar Berrada travelled to Monaco for talks with co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe about the 45-year-old’s future, with a recommendation that he should be sacked and replaced by Pochettino.
The Red Devils have been working on a deal to bring the former Tottenham boss to Old Trafford this week.
Pochettino will preside over the USA’s two games against Haiti in the coming week, before he travels to Manchester to prepare for the trip to Anfield and the meeting with Liverpool on Sunday in a week’s time.
After Sir Alex Ferguson led United for 27 years between 1986 and 2013, Carrick’s departure means Pochettino will be the club’s 13th managerial appointment since the icon’s departure 13 years ago – including temporary appointments.
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| Name | Date of birth | Nationality | Employee | Quit | Time in the position | Matches | Points per game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mauricio Pochettino | 02.03.1972 | Argentina / Spain | 19.11.2026 | – | – | 0 | – |
| Michael Carrick | 28.07.1981 | England | 22.05.2026 | 12.11.2026 | 174 days | 16 | 1,06 |
| Michael Carrick | 28.07.1981 | England | 13.01.2026 | 22.05.2026 | 129 days | 16 | 2,25 |
| Darren Fletcher | 01.02.1984 | Scotland | 05.01.2026 | 13.01.2026 | 8 days | 2 | 0,50 |
| Ruben Amorim | 27.01.1985 | Portugal | 11.11.2024 | 05.01.2026 | 420 days | 63 | 1,43 |
| Ruud van Nistelrooy | 01.07.1976 | Netherlands | 28.10.2024 | 11.11.2024 | 14 days | 4 | 2,50 |
| Erik ten Hag | 02.02.1970 | Netherlands | 01.07.2022 | 28.10.2024 | 850 days | 128 | 1,84 |
| Ralf Rangnick | 29.06.1958 | Germany | 03.12.2021 | 31.05.2022 | 179 days | 29 | 1,45 |
| Michael Carrick | 28.07.1981 | England | 21.11.2021 | 03.12.2021 | 12 days | 3 | 2,33 |
| Ole Gunnar Solskjaer | 26.02.1973 | Norway | 28.03.2019 | 21.11.2021 | 969 days | 149 | 1,79 |
| Ole Gunnar Solskjaer | 26.02.1973 | Norway | 19.12.2018 | 28.03.2019 | 99 days | 19 | 2,32 |
| José Mourinho | 26.01.1963 | Portugal | 01.07.2016 | 18.12.2018 | 900 days | 144 | 1,97 |
| Louis van Gaal | 08.08.1951 | Netherlands | 14.07.2014 | 23.05.2016 | 679 days | 103 | 1,81 |
| Ryan Giggs | 29.11.1973 | Wales / Sierra Leone | 23.04.2014 | 30.06.2014 | 68 days | 4 | 1,75 |
| David Moyes | 25.04.1963 | Scotland | 01.07.2013 | 22.04.2014 | 295 days | 51 | 1,73 |
| Alex Ferguson | 31.12.1941 | Scotland | 06.11.1986 | 30.06.2013 | 9,733 days | 1 499 | 2,02 |
The odds are against Pochettino getting a long spell at Old Trafford, and in the latest episode of the Rest is Football podcast, Lineker says he doesn’t think the Argentine will come close to completing his 30-month contract.
The former Match of the Day presenter said: “I look at that club and I don’t think it… I see Pochettino going in there and I think they’ll probably get off to a reasonable start. They’ll do well for a while.
I think for Pochettino it’s a big club, Manchester United, big of names. He goes in there and then he gets disappointed with how things are progressing going forward. And if he’s still there in 18 months’ time, I’ll be surprised, because it’s again and again, rinse and repeat.
“The scapegoat is always the coach, and you can see that. And I think the real problems are above the coach.”
Lineker is absolutely right
In recent years, managers such as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Erik ten Hag, Ruben Amorim and now finally Carrick, who after his success last season, may have expected a good time as a coach at Old Trafford.
Carrick’s permanent position is gone in a matter of weeks, while Amorim only lasted a little over a year as manager.
With United currently in the relegation places in the Premier League, it is clear that the pressure will immediately be on Pochettino to deliver performances and results.
He can do it, but the fact that he will be the 13th appointment since Sir Alex left the club 13 years ago tells you everything you need to know about the fact that there are bigger problems at the club than just the manager.
Firstly, the players need to take some responsibility because they are not performing anywhere near the level they had in the first half of 2026, and this has also been a persistent problem under previous managers.
The recruitment team of Wilcox and Berrada must also take some of the blame, given the influence they have on who the manager is and which players are brought to the club.
In a summer when United had to get it right before returning to the Champions League, they spent £70 million on an injured player who has only recently started playing, while £50 million for Andrey Santos is looking more and more confusing by the day.
Ratcliffe has also hardly had a positive impact in general, while the supporters’ view of the Glazer family has been clear for a very long time.
Manchester United have a lot of problems, and it wouldn’t be surprising if Lineker is right – and Pochettino is no longer the club’s manager at the end of next season.
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