Ratcliffe's managerial merry-go-round at Manchester United set to cost £50m in under three years

Manchester United are on the verge of appointing their fourth manager under Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s ownership, with the total cost of the club’s managerial upheaval since February 2024 set to exceed £50 million — averaging more than £50,000 a day across 33 months of ownership.

Michael Carrick is expected to be sacked following a meeting in Monaco between Ratcliffe, chief executive Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox, with current United States head coach Mauricio Pochettino lined up as his replacement. Carrick, who was appointed nine months ago after being out of work, signed a two-year deal in May that is understood to contain a one-year break clause, meaning his compensation and that of his backroom staff is expected to come in at around £5 million.

Pochettino has a $10 million (£7.5 million) release clause in his contract with the US Soccer Federation, though the final cost is likely to be higher. The 54-year-old is expected to bring a trusted backroom team including assistant Jesus Perez, assistant coach Miguel D’Agostino and goalkeeper coach Antonio Jimenez, with his son Sebastiano — a sports scientist — also part of his setup in the United States.

The spending began when Ratcliffe recruited Dan Ashworth from Newcastle United, paying the Magpies £3 million for his services, only to dismiss him four months later at a further cost of £4.1 million in compensation. Ineos then chose to retain Erik ten Hag in the summer of 2024 after he won the FA Cup, handing him a new contract before sacking him at the end of October 2024 at a cost of £10.4 million.

Ruben Amorim was identified as Ten Hag’s replacement and appointed mid-season at a cost of £11 million to release him and his backroom staff from Sporting. The Portuguese coach lasted just 63 games before being dismissed in January 2026, with United’s compensation bill for those departures reaching £8.2 million — £8.5 million less than it might have been, after Amorim subsequently took the AC Milan job.

The full financial picture for the Carrick and Pochettino appointments will not be confirmed until United publish their next set of accounts in the new year.