Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has backed his former teammate Michael Carrick to become Manchester United manager someday.

Solskjaer and Carrick shared the pitch briefly during their time at Manchester United. While the former’s career was ending, the latter’s was just starting. They were both part of the team that won the Premier League title in 2006/07, which was Ole’s last season.

But their journey together didn’t end there. The pair have since taken up managerial positions at Old Trafford, where Solskjaer was the first team manager from March 2019 until November 2021 while Carrick was the assistant manager. After Solskjaer’s departure, Carrick served as 

caretaker manager for two matches before being replaced by Ralf Rangnick.

Carrick meanwhile started his first managerial job taking over Championship club Middlesbrough in October 2022. He has done an excellent job there, despite taking over a poor squad there. He finished fourth in his first season and took the team to the promotion play-offs, enticing fans to get involved in Man United game odds.

What did Ole Gunnar Solskjaer say?

In an interview with The Athletic, Solskjaer spoke about Carrick and how he has the potential to become the Manchester United boss in the near future.

He said, “Michael is a man of value and principles, a big family man, but his knowledge is also second to none. He’s had Sir Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho as managers, and he’s played with the best players in the world. He’s a winner, but he’s still in control of his emotions.”

“I cannot see him not being the Manchester United manager.”

He also described what he thinks makes Carrick very good, “Michael is a proper human being, a proper man who you want to be successful. There’s no s**t about him; he does what he does for the right reasons.”

Carrick and Man Utd job?

Currently, the Red Devils are in no hurry to replace new manager Erik Ten Haag. The Dutchman has won the club their first trophy in the Carabao Cup since the 2017-18 season.  They are 4th in the Premier League battling for a place in the Champions League. 

Though many feel the manager is out of his depth, the hierarchy definitely doesn’t think so. Besides, Carrick still has a lot to prove before taking over such a huge job.

But football is an unpredictable sport. In case Ten Haag does leave in the near future, Carrick could be called to replace him just as Ole was called to replace Jose Mourinho.

Carrick will now manage Middlesbrough through the Championship play-off semi-final match against Coventry City. A victory there will book a place in the play-off final at Wembley against either Luton Town or Sunderland.