Carrick says he is 'thriving' in clear message to Man Utd board over future

Michael Carrick says he is "thriving" at Manchester United as he gave a clear sign to the board about giving him the managerial role on a full time basis.

Up until now Carrick has been very cautious when asked about his future and simply said he was in the Old Trafford hotseat until the end of the season.

It is 100 days since the Red Devils appointed the former midfielder for the remainder of the season instead of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer following Ruben Amorim’s acrimonious January exit.

Carrick has surpassed many onlookers’ expectations since then, with wins against the likes of Manchester City, Arsenal and most recently Chelsea leaving them third in the Premier League.

United are within touching distance of Champions League qualification and talk is naturally turning to next season, when it has yet to be confirmed whether the 44-year-old will stay on.

“I’ve said it many times, I enjoy being here, I enjoy the role I’m in,” boss Carrick said ahead of Monday’s home match against Brentford.

“We’ve had some good results and we’re in decent shape. We still want to keep improving, there’s layers that we want to get to, really. I’ll see.

“I keep saying the same things every week. There’s only so much I can say in terms of that, but I’ve said it many times.

“Again, I enjoy being here, I love being here. It’s a real privilege to be in the position I am but thriving with the responsibility that we’ve got.”

Pushed on when he is expecting clarity, Carrick said: “I’m not sure, to be honest.

“Genuinely it’s not something in terms of deadlines that I’m really chasing. I think it’ll become clear when it’s going to become clear.

“I’m here at the moment to help the team and help the club get results.

“At the moment we’re doing all right. We can keep pushing and getting better, so, really, that’s genuinely all I’m focused on right now.”

Carrick pipped good friend Solskjaer to the job having worked under the Norwegian, who earned the permanent position in 2019 having impressed as Jose Mourinho’s interim replacement.

Some sceptics bring up Solskjaer’s time at the club when Amorim’s long-term successor at United is debated, but the current incumbent sees no link or value in such talk.

“I don’t think it’s disrespectful,” he said. “I’ve got the utmost respect for him.

“He’s a close friend of mine and I worked closely with him when I was here, so I was quite attached to that, and I thought we did a lot of good things.

“We came close and, in the end, it changed and went in a different direction. That’s football.

“You can compare to all sorts of different situations in managers and coaches and teams over the years. It just depends on what you choose to compare.

“But it’s irrelevant really. That’s not a negative or a positive, it just doesn’t really have any link at all.

“We’re a different team now, irrespective of me, who is in charge, it’s a different team and different time. I don’t really think comparisons make any difference.”

Harry Maguire is one of the players that remains from the Solskjaer era and will return from a two-game ban on Monday.

Leny Yoro will be assessed after missing the win at Chelsea, while fellow centre-back Lisandro Martinez is suspended and Matthijs de Ligt remains absent with a back issue. Patrick Dorgu is also not ready to return.