End approaching for Carrick but Man Utd fans make clear who they blame

There was an air of inevitability about Michael Carrick's walk around Old Trafford after the 3-0 home defeat by Bournemouth.

It is not unusual for Carrick to applaud the Manchester United fans. If anything, his acknowledgements were not as pronounced as they were in Como after the equally devastating loss.

But after eight games without a win, the worst run since 2015-16 and two horrific defeats in a week, the end is approaching for Carrick, with his bosses in serious talks about his future.

However, if anyone in a senior position at the club thinks the issues at Old Trafford will be solved simply by changing the head coach and, more importantly, the fans will be appeased by a new face in the dugout, the reaction from the stands on an awful day on and off the pitch would have very clearly told them otherwise.

On Friday, as he looked back on that 4-1 loss to Como and ahead to Bournemouth, Carrick said: "We'll be a different team on Sunday. We have to be a different team on Sunday."

Sadly, they weren't.

Carrick could not answer if he will still be in charge for next Saturday's trip to Chelsea. He does not know.

"The responsibility is mine," he said. "What else can I say really right now? I totally understand the situation. I'm not expecting anything either way. I love this place and I'll always do what I feel is going to be the best for the football club."

The debt they initially landed on the club has now grown to over £1.15bn, according to their latest accounts. The amount it has cost in interest is £852m, according to respected football finance blogger Swiss Ramble. In the last financial year, the interest payment was £37m, an increase from £34m the previous year.

The argument is, that money could have been used far more productively to sign better players.

There had been hope Ratcliffe, a boyhood United fan, would change that when he struck a deal with the Glazers to become a minority shareholder on Christmas Eve 2023.

Instead, a succession of decisions have led to major questions over his handling of the club.

On the management side, United's hierarchy eventually backed Erik ten Hag after talking with alternatives in the wake of the shock 2024 FA Cup final triumph over Manchester City, spending over £200m on the likes of Leny Yoro, Matthijs de Ligt and Manuel Ugarte.

Last week, Ten Hag told the Athletic, external the club went back on a promise not to sell homegrown Scotland international Scott McTominay to fund Ugarte's £50m move from Paris St-Germain. They sacked the Dutchman in October 2024.

After that they persuaded Ruben Amorim to leave Sporting mid-season, when he wanted to wait until the summer.

They stuck with him after an unprecedented 15th-place finish, and again after United lost to League Two Grimsby in the EFL Cup, then sacked him in January when he clashed with director of football Jason Wilcox over playing style.

That led to Carrick's arrival to the end of the season, which turned into a permanent appointment after he guided the club back into the Champions League after a two-year absence.

A third dismissal in three seasons would not reflect well on anyone.

The 'Standards' banner that was held up on the Stretford End showing the images of legendary skippers Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona and Roy Keane was there to remind the executives running the club of the history they should be aspiring to.

Wilcox has largely operated behind the scenes but he could not fail to hear the obscenities being sung against him during today's game, nor the boos as he climbed into the vehicle taking him away from the stadium nearly two hours after the final whistle.

Recruited from a similar role at Southampton following the Ratcliffe takeover and elevated in status following the dismissal of Dan Ashworth, amid the decision to recruit Amorim, the 55-year-old is blamed by many fans for the club's recent recruitment, even though the budget was set at a much higher level.

Sat next to him at Old Trafford to watch the Bournemouth debacle unfold was chief executive Omar Berrada, who worked with Wilcox at Manchester City.

Having senior figures steeped in City's recent history was always a potential problem if results didn't go well. Berrada played no part in the recent Premier League proceedings that found City guilty of multiple breaches of financial rules, but the link is clear, and United's fans sang about that at Old Trafford as well.

If that wasn't enough, a ticket touting investigation launched in the summer led to condemnation from all United's major fan groups. The club argued they were trying to catch touts, while fans felt it was an attempt to drive regular match-goers out in favour of more corporate sales. The club are adamant that is not the case, but the argument is falling on deaf ears.

The same is also true of plans for a new 100,000-capacity stadium. The club conducted a survey which they said showed the majority of respondents were in favour of a new ground. The stadium is likely to cost in excess of £2bn and United spent £63.5m on land for it earlier this year.

Some supporters simply don't believe those figures. The Stretford End impolitely told Ratcliffe they had no interest in a new stadium as well today.

Carrick may take responsibility for poor results but there is far more than that causing unrest at Manchester United just now.