Manchester United currently find themselves in the midst of a winless streak spanning seven matches across all competitions. This recurring cycle of failure, which has haunted every manager since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013, has now firmly taken hold of Michael Carrick. As the seventh permanent manager appointed since Ferguson concluded his legendary 26-year tenure with 38 trophies, Carrick faces the daunting task of reversing a trend of decay that has defied his predecessors. All eventually found the unwieldy beast that is United impossible to tame. Admittedly – was botched so badly, they have been heading towards this point ever since the succession plan to Ferguson – not easy.
The current situation echoes the final days of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who was dismissed in 2021 after a 4-1 defeat at Watford. Carrick recently mimicked that somber scene, apologizing to supporters following a similarly humbling 4-1 loss. This latest performance has left the squad in a state of unrest, illustrated by defender Lisandro Martinez publicly addressing the team’s deficiencies, fueling perceptions that the core of the club remains fundamentally broken. Carrick recreated a familiar scene – the same one acted out by predecessor Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after a 4-1 loss at Watford in November 2021 cost him his job – by raising his hands in apology to supporters who had just seen United humiliated by the same scoreline at Como in the Champions League. With results poor and revolt within the dressing room as defender Lisandro Martinez took aim at director of football Jason Wilcox after the Champions League defeat at Atletico Madrid, while captain Bruno Fernandes questioned the tactics in Como, carrick will need something miraculous to change that storyline. Moyes, an ill-starred appointment led by Ferguson, found the job too big for him after leaving Everton. Ten Hag got the job on the back of leading a superb young Ajax side to the Champions League semi-final. On current evidence, will pay the price for United’s failings, carrick is front of house and. Regarded as a prized capture, only to leave after a behind-the-scenes disagreement five months after his appointment, he arrived in July with a reputation as one of the game’s shrewdest administrators.
While managers like Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, and Erik ten Hag achieved fleeting success—winning the FA Cup in 2016 and 2024, and securing the League Cup and Europa League in 2017 respectively—the overarching narrative has been one of decline. There have also been spells as interims for others such as Ryan Giggs, Ralf Rangnick, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Darren Fletcher. Van Gaal and Mourinho were tried and trusted operators with stellar track records of success at Europe’s superpowers.
The club’s leadership, from former executive Ed Woodward to the Glazer family and current part-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, has cycled through various strategies without stopping the rot. In turn, Ratcliffe’s move into part-ownership alongside the Glazer family has meant fans turned on him for his association and business partnership with the hugely unpopular Americans.
The list of managers—including David Moyes, Van Gaal, Mourinho, Solskjaer, Ten Hag, Ruben Amorim, and now Carrick—highlights a failure to establish long-term stability. Slim pickings compared to previous glories.
The organizational challenges became glaringly apparent in December 2019, when elite managers Carlo Ancelotti, Pep Guardiola, and Jurgen Klopp all turned down the chance to manage at Old Trafford, despite working just miles away in the north-west. At the time, United opted for the sentimental appointment of Solskjaer. Today, the club’s diminished standing suggests they can no longer easily recruit the world’s finest coaching talent, as potential candidates must now be convinced that a future at United involves more than inevitable dismissal. So should it really be crestfallen managers standing in front of those disappointed supporters. Carlo Ancelotti, Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp all felt able to resist the lure of Old Trafford, leading to what should have been red faces all round in December 2019, when they were all managing within 35 miles of each other in the north-west but none were at United. Despite the level of angered aimed towards them from supporters, unmoved by years of ill feeling, they have remained majority owners.
Internal turmoil extends beyond the touchline.
Recent imagery from a match at Wolves showed part-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe in a heated exchange with director of football Jason Wilcox, with CEO Omar Berrada positioned between them. Manchester United part-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe in heated discussion with director of football Jason Wilcox – with CEO Omar Berrada in between – at Wolves in December 2025.
Ratcliffe, who has attempted to implement cost-cutting measures, has faced persistent fan protests regarding the Glazers’ leveraged purchase and subsequent debt, which remains at £1bn despite recent efforts. Their leveraged purchase loading debt on to the club, united fans have held regular protests against the Glazers since they took control in 2005.
Furthermore, the club’s administrative instability was underscored by the chaotic departure of sporting director Dan Ashworth in 2024, who spent significant time on gardening leave before exiting amidst internal disputes regarding management decisions.
The financial backdrop remains complex. Despite missing out on European football for the first time in a decade, United reported record revenues of £678m and an operating profit of £23m, a stark improvement from the £113m loss in the 2023-24 period. Ratcliffe is also pushing for a legacy project: a new 100,000-capacity stadium estimated to cost over £2bn, with the club already committing £64m toward land acquisition. However, these figures contrast sharply with the on-field reality. United, however, have not become a bad or dysfunctional club overnight.
The decision to retain Ten Hag following the 2024 FA Cup win against Manchester City—only to sack him six months later after handing him £200m in transfer funds—is now viewed as a catastrophic strategic error. As Carrick currently faces the scrutiny, it appears the club is repeating the same mistakes that hampered his predecessors. Without a significant shift in operational strategy, the question remains whether the club has reached a point of being truly unmanageable, regardless of who occupies the managerial chair. But appointed after a successful spell in temporary charge, solskjaer was effectively the anti-Mourinho without any sort of managerial track record that suggested he would succeed at United. Sacked by Cardiff City in September 2014 after only nine months in charge as they struggled in the Championship, solskjaer shared that same unwanted distinction. Both financially and in a footballing context, it was a catastrophic move to keep Ten Hag.
