From drift to direction: Carrick’s United revival

Manchester United’s season had taken on a familiar, unsettled quality when Michael Carrick stepped into the managerial role in January. The dismissal of Ruben Amorim, following months of inconsistent results and mounting discontent, had left the club once again at an uncertain crossroads, a position it has occupied with uncomfortable regularity in the years since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement.

United’s resurgence under Carrick has drawn inevitable parallels with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s interim spell in 2018-19. Both former United players inherited sides midway through troubled campaigns and restored optimism through improved results, with Solskjær winning 14 of his first 19 games and guiding United to a sixth-place finish before earning the role permanently.