Manchester United has turned to a familiar name to lead them for the rest of the season.
Former Red Devils midfielder Michael Carrick has been named head coach for the remainder of the 2025-2026 campaign.
Michael Carrick is back 🤝
Our former captain is our Head Coach for the remainder of 2025/26 đź”´
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) January 13, 2026
Carrick, 44, spent 12 seasons with the team, winning 12 major honours, including a Premier League and Champions League double in 2008.
“Having the responsibility to lead Manchester United is an honour,” Carrick said in a statement. “I know what it takes to succeed here; my focus is now on helping the players to reach the standards that we expect at this incredible club, which we know that this group is more than capable of producing. I have worked with a number of the players already and have obviously continued to watch the team closely in recent years, I have total belief in their talents, dedication and ability to be successful here. There is still a lot to fight for this season, we are ready to pull everyone together and give the fans the performances that their loyal support deserves.”
A native of Wallsend, England, Carrick was a product of the West Ham academy, making his first team debut in 1999. After five seasons with Hammers, he signed for Tottenham Hotspur in 2004 before joining United in a ÂŁ18.6 million move in 2006.
Carrick would go on to make 316 Premier League appearances for the team before retiring in 2018. He won five league titles at Old Trafford.
Internationally, Carrick was capped 34 times by England and was named to two World Cup squads.
After retiring, Carrick joined Jose Mourinho’s staff at the club. Briefly serving as caretaker manager after Mourinho’s firing, Carrick stayed on as an assistant with new manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Upon Solskjaer’s dismissal in the fall of 2021, Carrick once again assumed the caretaker’s role for three matches.
Carrick got his first permanent managerial role in 2022 with Middlesbrough where he would spent parts of three seasons. In 136 games, Carrick had a record of 63-24-49.
Carrick succeeds Ruben Amorim, who was fired last week after 18 months on the job. Carrick’s former teammate, Darren Fletcher, led the team on an interim basis and will now return to his role as head coach of the under-18 squad.
United, who did not qualify for Europe this season and is already out of both the League Cup and FA Cup, currently sit seventh in the table, three points behind Liverpool for the final Champions League spot. They return to action on Saturday with a visit from Manchester City at Old Trafford.