Championship manager to snub Man Utd offer as ‘only focus’ revealed | OneFootball

Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna has no interest in taking the Manchester United job as things stand, with promotion back to the Premier League “all he is thinking of right now”.

McKenna guided Ipswich up to the Premier League in 2024 following back-to-back promotions.

Ipswich pushing for immediate Premier League return

The Tractor Boys were relegated after one season in the top flight, as all three promoted teams returned to the Championship for the second year in a row.

Sunderland look set to buck that trend this season, but last season’s Championship runners-up Burnley are currently in the relegation zone, while Leeds United sit 16th in the Premier League table, six points above West Ham in 18th.

Ipswich are well positioned to return to the top flight at the first time of asking, sitting third in the Championship, five points adrift of the automatic promotion places and with a seven-point cushion in the play-offs.

McKenna continues to do a brilliant job at Portman Road and will surely attract interest from bigger clubs in the summer, whether Ipswich earn promotion or not.

One club the 39-year-old remains linked with is Manchester United.

The Ipswich manager was part of the coaching staff at Old Trafford during Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s time in charge and remains highly rated at the Premier League club.

Chelsea and Brighton have also been linked with McKenna in the past, but both clubs ultimately went in different directions.

The chances of a move to a Premier League club remain high, but not any time soon, according to Football Insider.

Potential Man Utd target focused solely on promotion push

Transfer journalist Pete O’Rourke insists McKenna’s only focus is on Ipswich’s promotion push, meaning any approach from United would be rejected.

“Yeah, I don’t think he’d be looking at a move away from Ipswich right now,” O’Rourke told the Transfer Insider podcast.

“He was linked with Manchester United and Chelsea before he signed a new contract at Ipswich over a year ago as well.

“He’s under contract at Portman Road until 2028 and he’s on a lucrative deal there as well, so it would be an expensive one if anybody wanted to lure McKenna away.

“Look, their focus is on trying to win promotion back to the Premier League and I’m sure that’s all Kieran McKenna is thinking of right now.

“I don’t think there are any plans for McKenna to be leaving Ipswich. He wants to try and finish the job and get them back to the Premier League following their relegation last season.”

Michael Carrick favourite for Manchester United job

The Red Devils have won their opening two matches under Carrick, against the Premier League’s top two, Manchester City and Arsenal, prompting an immediate clamour for him to be rewarded with the job.

Gary Neville has gone on record to say Carrick should not be appointed even if he wins every game until the end of the season, and he has not changed his stance, though he has admitted United’s form has left him “absolutely startled”.

Appointing Carrick would feel like Groundhog Day for United after handing the job to Solskjaer following an impressive interim spell in 2019, and that could work against the current boss even if he enjoys a strong second half of the 2025/26 season.

The United hierarchy – led by co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, chief executive Omar Berrada and sporting director Jason Wilcox – are believed to want a proven winner to replace Amorim, with England boss Thomas Tuchel and Paris Saint-Germain’s Luis Enrique among those under consideration.