Manchester United officially announced that Ruben Amorim has stepped down from his position as the club's manager, with Darren Fletcher named as the interim boss.
As for the Darren Fletcher option, this was never Manchester United’s first choice. Meanwhile, another strong candidate has always been Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. As I mentioned immediately after Ruben Amorim’s sacking on Monday, Solskjaer instructed his agent to promptly convey to Man Utd his willingness and availability to work for the club. Man Utd held a quite positive meeting with Solskjaer, before later sitting down with Michael Carrick. Solskjaer remains open to returning to Man Utd, ready to help the club out. As I have stressed repeatedly, this is not about money or contracts. Solskjaer is absolutely prepared and fervently looking forward to the chance of coming back to Man Utd.
Regarding Fletcher, Man Utd has been quite satisfied with his training methods this week. However, the match against Brighton was always regarded as a crucial test to assess his suitability. If Man Utd had beaten Brighton and shown a different side to their play, he might have had the opportunity to lead the team until the end of the season as caretaker manager. But following their poor performance against Brighton and subsequent elimination from the FA Cup—let’s not forget they were knocked out of the EFL Cup last August and have now exited the FA Cup as well, meaning Man Utd is almost certain to end the season without a single trophy—the club decided to look for a different manager and accelerated negotiations for a caretaker appointment.
Now, Carrick is ready to say “yes” to Man Utd and is waiting for the club’s final communication. But Man Utd is pushing forward with the process, because sources close to the club understand that an official announcement will be made this week. It will come soon. Carrick is ready and waiting. Solskjaer, for his part, is keeping an eye on developments. As far as I know, Solskjaer has been waiting for a response from Man Utd all week, and he is truly very eager for this opportunity.
In terms of contracts and details, reaching an agreement with Carrick would not be a problem. Therefore, at this stage, the decision rests more with the club. Relevant discussions are ongoing between all parties involved, but it feels like Man Utd is likely to make a firm decision and move forward with the appointment of their new caretaker manager soon, possibly within the next 24 to 48 hours.
