Man Utd stick with Carrick after turbulent 48 hours that exposed deep squad and boardroom tensions

After Manchester United lost to Bournemouth at Old Trafford on Sunday, Michael Carrick was the last person to leave the stadium. The weather was foul and the afternoon had been worse on the pitch. He stayed anyway, posing for selfies and signing shirts for the fans who had waited. Inside the ground, the mood had turned. Support for a club legend had become hostility toward the current squad, and the atmosphere afterwards was described as emotional.

Asked at his news conference whether he expected to take charge of Saturday's trip to Chelsea, Carrick said he wasn't expecting anything in particular and was carrying on as normal. Few thought that could last. Even his coaching staff wondered whether they would survive. Yet they have. United have decided Carrick and his players will get the chance to turn things around, with no timescale attached. He will be on the touchline at Stamford Bridge with his team 16th in the table.

The path to that decision was slow. Carrick had been treading water since the 4-1 defeat at Como on 21 October, one of the worst European nights in the club's history. Andy Mitten, editor of the United We Stand fanzine, who interviewed chief executive Omar Berrada for the club last June, called the performance an affront to the name of Manchester United. Then captain Bruno Fernandes publicly questioned Carrick's tactics and his coaches' failure to see what was going wrong. A week earlier, defender Lisandro Martinez had said he expected more investment in the squad and more from technical director Jason Wilcox. The picture was of a squad out of control.

United felt that removing Carrick over a single bad night would look reactionary, so they kept the 45-year-old for the Bournemouth game. That was arguably worse than Como. Fernandes was dropped to the bench and played no part, and afterwards he liked an Instagram post captioned: "Never push a loyal person to the point where they no longer care."

Monday had been widely expected to bring an announcement ending Carrick's tenure. A senior United figure said calm and a clear head were needed. The players who started against Bournemouth had the day off, but Fernandes, there for pre-planned treatment, and Carrick, watching a closed-doors Under-21s game, were both at Carrington. So were Berrada and Wilcox, discussing the immediate future. Sources say it is inconceivable that minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe and the Glazer family were not part of those talks. By early evening it was clear there would be no update.

On Tuesday Carrick arrived at Carrington at 07:30 GMT and took training as normal. With Fernandes and several other players, he signed autographs and posed for photographs with fans invited to the site. Four hours later, United sources confirmed he would be in charge at Chelsea.

The club does not see the situation as entirely his fault. Senior figures believe the squad is capable of qualifying for the Champions League and is badly underperforming. One player told BBC Sport the feeling was that everyone wanted to put it right, though it is not known whether that includes Fernandes, and it is unclear what conversations the captain and coach have had. A former senior United official was blunt: ordinarily Carrick would have gone, the last two performances were unacceptable and discipline is broken, and not acting was fascinating and risky.

There are other explanations for the reprieve. United may have been unable to secure a replacement before Chelsea. Some coaches Darren Fletcher drew on during his interim spell in January are now in the senior set-up. Eddie Howe and Julian Nagelsmann were explored, and hiring Howe would trigger a multi-million pound payment to Newcastle. Antonio Conte is reportedly willing to talk, though there has been no direct contact. Kieran McKenna is also available. Unai Emery has strong backing at United, but the club is realistic about prising him from Aston Villa.

Wilcox's position is under scrutiny too. One source thinks he would inevitably go if United make a third managerial change in as many seasons, though there is sympathy because he did not set the summer transfer budget. Others note Ratcliffe has provided significant transfer funds since taking charge of football affairs in early 2024, plus £300m of his own money. It has never been explained why the summer focused on midfield rather than left-back and central striker, a problem sharpened by injuries to Luke Shaw and Benjamin Sesko. Another senior figure suggested both Wilcox and Berrada may be vulnerable to a wider overhaul.

After Chelsea come a crucial Champions League match against Roma three days later, then in-form Aston Villa, then a two-week international break. Nobody at United says so, but that is the obvious moment to decide on a change. Carrick speaks to the media on Thursday.