Carrick laughs off Butt's claim he had doubts about management before Man Utd role

Michael Carrick has publicly brushed aside claims made by former Manchester United teammate Nicky Butt that he had serious reservations about returning to management before taking charge at Old Trafford.

Butt, speaking on The Good, The Bad & The Football podcast, recalled a conversation he had with Carrick prior to the 45-year-old’s appointment at United. “I was with Michael before he got the Man United job and spoke to him about management,” Butt said. “He went, ‘No it’s not for me, it’s too much. My head’s all over the show. I’d only do it for the big job.’ The big job is Man United.”

When those comments were put to Carrick at his Friday press conference ahead of United’s Premier League trip to Leeds, the manager was quick to dismiss them with a smile. “I definitely wouldn’t be here if that was the case, would I?” he said.

Carrick, who was dismissed by Middlesbrough in the summer of 2025 before being appointed United’s permanent manager, insisted he has no regrets about returning to the dugout. “It’s the best job I could possibly have. It’s the best role I could possibly have. I feel a real privilege of being in this position and a real responsibility, but equally a drive of wanting to make a difference and having success here.”

He also embraced the pressure that comes with United’s difficult start to the season, in which he has won just two of his nine games. “I love the situation when actually you get a little bit of a struggle where you’ve got to find a way out of it. I actually really enjoy that because that’s part of what drives you to have success. If you’re not ready for that and you can’t do anything that’s difficult, then you’re never going to be great.”

United are understood to have taken a dim view of Butt’s decision to go public with the private conversation, particularly given the club’s poor early-season form — a sharp contrast to the momentum Carrick generated when first appointed on an interim basis earlier in the year.

Despite the pressure, Carrick denied that the Leeds fixture represents a must-win moment for his position. “I don’t think it’s the last game I need right now, for sure,” he said. “I’m really looking forward to the game. I generally feel the drive for myself to want to push this club forward more than anything. There’s always negativity if you want to look for it, but I don’t go looking for it.”