Michael Carrick can save Man Utd careers of six exit-linked players as two get new contracts | OneFootball

After sacking Ruben Amorim, Manchester United have appointed Michael Carrick as their interim head coach for the rest of the 2025/26 season.

Carrick has 17 Premier League games in which to get his ideas across before aiming to be in the mix for the permanent job, as TEAMtalk’s Fraser Fletcher confirmed on Tuesday was his ambition.

His arrival in the dugout could also help a number of United players who struggled under Amorim and were facing uncertain futures at Old Trafford.

We’ve taken a look at six players who could get a chance to save their United careers and stay at the club into next season if they experience an upturn in form under Carrick.

Kobbie Mainoo

Following his brilliant breakthrough season at United in the 2023/24 campaign, Mainoo established himself as one of the most promising talents in English football.

But Amorim’s 3-4-2-1 formation put him in direct competition with club captain Bruno Fernandes, and he is yet to start a Premier League game this season.

The England international became frustrated with his lack of playing time and was looking to leave United on loan in the January transfer window.

A move now looks unlikely as a switch to the 4-2-3-1 formation will give him more opportunities at Old Trafford, and Carrick has previously suggested he’d build the United side around the 20-year-old.

“Yeah, I think for a club to have a player who’s come through the academy and knows the club and feels it, I think Man Utd has to have an element of that,” he told former team-mate Rio Ferdinand on his YouTube show. “Always has done, should always have.

“I think to have a talent like he’s shown already, you’ve got to have players like that, that you can say ‘they get it, they know it.’

“Let’s help them, let’s build [with] them, and let’s stick with them. There’s definitely a place for him there, for sure.”

United will be the market for at least one new midfielder in the summer transfer window, but Mainoo now has the chance to earn the new long-term contract that he has been looking for.

Manuel Ugarte

Since joining United from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer of 2024, Ugarte has failed to live up to his £50.8million price tag and is now behind Casemiro in the midfield pecking order.

The Uruguay international currently believes he has no long-term future at Old Trafford and has been linked with a move to Turkish side Galatasaray.

But United aren’t looking to sanction any departures in the January window, and working closely with a former midfielder like Carrick could help the 24-year-old rediscover his best form – as other midfielders have discovered in the past.

“Carrick helps me a lot day-to-day,” former United midfielder Fred said in 2020. “We always talk and he tries to help me with my positioning on the field.

“Carrick’s a guy that always helps me. He’s someone who always talks to me which is important for adapting my football to the English league.

“When I arrived, I would control the ball in midfield and, well, one or two opposition players would come along and I’d be knocked off the ball. Now I can understand the game better and that I have to be quicker and stronger. So Carrick helps me day-to-day, we do some one-to-one training.”

Harry Maguire

Maguire was initially one of the main benefactors following Amorim’s arrival, impressing in a back three and playing an integral role in United’s run to the Europa League final.

But the centre-back started just four of United’s first 11 Premier League games this season and then spent two months on the sidelines with a thigh injury.

He recently returned to fitness and may get more opportunities under Carrick, who worked with the 32-year-old during his time as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s assistant.

“I’m so pleased for Harry Maguire,” Carrick said earlier this season while on punditry for Premier League Productions. “He’s done some really good things for the football club, and he’s been through the mill at times as well.

“He’s had some unfair times. But he’s come back unbelievably well and turned into a leader and a real talisman. It takes a lot when you’re up against it. There’s no hiding place at a club like Manchester United. It’s fantastic.”

His United contract is currently set to expire at the end of the season, but a regular run of games under Carrick could help him earn an extension.

Man Utd stars Casemiro and Harry Maguire

Diogo Dalot

Dalot usurped Aaron Wan-Bissaka as United’s first-choice right-back under Erik ten Hag and was also voted the Players’ Player of the Year for the 2023/24 campaign.

His form declined following Amorim’s arrival and the switch to the 3-4-2-1 formation, as he lacks the attacking output required from a top-class wing-back.

The Portugal international has now become a much-maligned figure at Old Trafford, but a return to a back-four formation could help him turn things around.

Carrick’s system at Middlesbrough saw him deploy one of his full-backs in a high and wide position to provide width, while the other full-back tucked in to form a back three in possession.

The latter is similar to how Ten Hag used the 26-year-old, and it plays to his strengths due to his ability to receive the ball in deeper areas and carry up the pitch.

Patrick Dorgu

The first major signing of the Amorim era, Dorgu arrived at Old Trafford last January and was brought in to play as a wing-back in the 3-4-2-1 formation.

The Denmark international provided dynamism on the left flank but also faced criticised for his lack of end product, registering just one goal and three assists in 40 appearances under Amorim.

With Amorim sacked and United likely to return to a back four, the wing-back role has now become redundant and his future at Old Trafford looks uncertain.

But the 21-year-old predominantly played at left-back for Lecce, and Carrick deployed a winger like Samuel Iling-Junior as his left-back at Middlesbrough.

This role would suit Dorgu more than Luke Shaw, who played as a left-centre-back under Amorim and may now lack the athleticism to get up and down the pitch.

He now has the rest of the 2025/26 season to prove he has the defensive qualities to play as a left-back in a back four in the Premier League.

Joshua Zirkzee

Zirkzee has endured a difficult time at United since his £36.5million move from Bologna in July 2024, registering nine goals and four assists in 65 appearances in all competitions.

Having made just four Premier League starts under Amorim this season, the Netherlands international held talks with Roma over a January move.

But United have reportedly blocked his exit, and we understand that he is now hoping to impress Carrick and play a part in the second half of the season.

The 24-year-old may look at how the former Middlesbrough manager transformed striker Chuba Akpom into a No.10 behind Cameron Archer during the 2022/23 season.

Zirkzee is renowned for his impressive link-up play and could have a similar role in Carrick’s United side, playing alongside Benjamin Sesko in a fluid attacking set-up.