A former player returning to Manchester United to steady the ship after a roller-coaster ride under a Portuguese coach — the comparisons between the caretaker appointments of Ole Gunnar Solskjær in 2018 and Michael Carrick eight years later are obvious.
It might not end there.Solskjær took over from Jose Mourinho and did enough to win the job permanently, whereas Carrick has taken the reins from Ruben Amorim.After Carrick began his tenure with remarkable wins over Manchester City and Arsenal, there are murmurings among excited supporters that United could already have the right man in the dugout. ThereS a new hierarchy thes days with different voices making the big decisions. Still, the similarities between Solskjær and Carrick are hard to escape.
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From stopgap to main man
Sources involved in hiring Solskjær in December 2018 have told ESPN the Norwegian was considered a “stopgap” when Mourinho was sacked. The plan was to buy time.
Laurent Blanc,who also had a brief stint as a player at Old Trafford,was another name in the frame to take the position temporarily,but there was a feeling internally that spells in big jobs with France and Paris saint-Germain made it look like a long-term appointment in waiting.
Solskjær was viewed as a safer bet. He had a job at Molde to go back to in the summer of 2019 when United’s recruitment process to find a new manager was scheduled to reach its natural end.Solskjær — who had Carrick on his staff — wasn’t initially considered a front-runner for
Michael Carrick’s Approach Differs from Predecessors
Michael Carrick is managing manchester United with a markedly different approach than previous managers, particularly Ole Gunnar Solskjær and José Mourinho, prioritizing player protection and a streamlined media presence.
Carrick’s handling of post-match press conferences contrasts sharply with the more critical styles of his predecessors. Following a pre-season tour of America in the summer of 2023, reports indicated that some club officials viewed it as a sign of potential difficulties. Similarly, Carrick didn’t publicly amplify criticisms made about players Benjamin Sesko and Patrick Dorgu. He described Sesko as “struggling” and Dorgu as “anxious” when speaking about their performances.
Carrick has also noticeably shortened his news conferences. When given the chance to criticize Diogo Dalot after a poor performance against Manchester City, Carrick chose to defend the player, a departure from how Mourinho might have responded.
Solskjær was praised for his media handling, and Carrick appears to be adopting a similar strategy of positive dialog.
Off-field Considerations
The differences between the managers extended beyond on-field tactics and player criticism. Solskjær fostered a positive relationship with the media, while Mourinho clashed with the club over structural changes.
In 2018, José Mourinho reportedly confronted then-executive vice chairman Ed woodward after learning of plans to hire a director of football, stating, “Tell me this isn’t true.” This occurred after reports surfaced regarding the club’s intention to modernize its structure. Despite the club’s long-term goal of implementing this change, there was a perception that it couldn’t be achieved while mourinho was in charge.
