Manchester United’s pursuit of Mauricio Pochettino to succeed Michael Carrick has drawn sharp criticism from a leading Sky Sports News analyst, who argues that the club has better options available and that the process exposes deeper problems at Old Trafford. United have reached an agreement with the USA national team to appoint Pochettino, while Carrick takes training.
Pochettino would not be a top target elsewhere
The analyst said he admires Pochettino’s work but questioned whether he would be a leading candidate for the biggest jobs in the game. “Would he be in the frame to get the Liverpool job if that was available? Would he be in the frame to get the Arsenal job if that was available? Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Real Madrid, would they be looking at Mauricio Pochettino?” he said.
He noted that Pochettino did not get the Tottenham job the last time it was available. He added that the appointment could work in the short term, as players would respond well to Pochettino calling the shots, but he expressed doubts about the long term. “I hope Mauricio knows what he’s letting himself in for if he does become the next United manager,” he said.
He pointed to managers with stronger credentials in English football. “Eddie Howe’s got a better CV. Howe’s won a domestic trophy in English football, with Newcastle United. Antonio Conte has won the title in his first season at Chelsea,” he said.
He reviewed Pochettino’s career in detail. He praised his time at Southampton, where the club finished eighth, and at Tottenham, where they came close to the title and reached the Champions League final. However, he noted that Pochettino failed to win a trophy in five seasons at Spurs. At Paris Saint-Germain, he managed Neymar, Mbappe and Messi, and the club finished second in his first season before winning the title the following year. Pochettino was sacked by PSG, and he lasted only one season at Chelsea, which finished sixth. Since moving to the USA, he has done “a pretty good job” but has not “set the world on fire,” the analyst said, adding that the USA were comprehensively outplayed by Belgium in the Round of 16 of the World Cup.
Why not sign him in the summer?
The analyst questioned the timing of the move. He noted that Pochettino’s contract with the USA ran out in July, meaning he was available then. By that point, United had already appointed Carrick. “Surely they would have known that he was going to become available?” he asked.
He also highlighted the cost of the club’s managerial changes. Since Sir Alex Ferguson left, he said, United would have spent more than £100m hiring and firing managers if they dismiss Carrick and hire Pochettino. Reports suggest United would need to pay $10m to secure Pochettino. “Couldn’t they have had him for nothing in the summer?” he asked.
Carrick suffering in public
The analyst said the handling of Carrick reflects poorly on the club. “Most people in football will think this is a pretty shameful way to treat Michael Carrick, an incredible player for the club. Somebody who is Manchester United through and through,” he said.
He criticised the decision to hold a meeting in Monaco involving the chief executive and director of football to rubber-stamp Carrick’s sacking. He argued that it is an open secret in football that Carrick is leaving and will be replaced by Pochettino. “Why are you letting Michael Carrick suffer in public?” he asked. Although he acknowledged the meeting covered more than just Carrick, he said it makes United look bad.
Who is making the decisions?
The analyst questioned who controls the club’s direction. He named chief executive Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox as the club’s senior football figures. He said many United fans do not want either of them at the club. Fans believe Berrada lacks sufficient experience as a chief executive, having had none before taking the United job, and that Wilcox lacks the experience required for a club of United’s size.
He also pointed to the roles of INEOS and Jim Ratcliffe, who own around 30 per cent of the club and oversee football operations. However, he said every decision must still be signed off by the Glazer family. “Is it the Glazer family? Is it Ratcliffe and Ineos? Is it Berrada and Wilcox? Do the Glazers see Mauricio Pochettino as the man to turn around United’s fortunes?” he asked.
Ratcliffe has struggled to fix the structure
The analyst argued that the Glazers still hold the greater influence. Although Ratcliffe runs football operations, the Glazer family own more shares than he does. “So ultimately, if the club belongs to anybody, it still belongs to the Glazer family. And it’s only natural that they would want a say in who is going to be the manager,” he said.
He suggested the Glazers are watching Ratcliffe’s management closely. If United dismiss Carrick and appoint Pochettino, he noted, Pochettino would be the fourth manager in three seasons under Ratcliffe. When Ratcliffe arrived, he identified the frequent hiring and firing of managers as a major problem and said the fault lay with the club’s structure rather than with the managers. “Obviously, looking from the outside in, he hasn’t done that so far,” the analyst said.