United chiefs split on Carrick successor as boardroom tensions follow 4-1 Como humiliation

Manchester United’s internal divisions have spread from the dressing room to the boardroom, with senior figures Jason Wilcox and Christopher Vivell reportedly holding conflicting views on who should succeed Michael Carrick as head coach. The disagreement follows a 4-1 thrashing at Como that has intensified pressure on the manager and laid bare wider problems at the club.

Carrick has managed only two wins in 11 games, and the defeat in Italy did little to ease concerns. Bruno Fernandes’s post-match comments about a lack of pressing drew a public rebuttal from the manager, highlighting a visible rift between players and staff. Several players have also spoken out about insufficient investment in the summer transfer window, a frustration that has reportedly been acknowledged internally — with some sympathy extended to Carrick, who is currently without nine senior players.

According to the Daily Mail, potential replacements have already been sounded out, even as Carrick is expected to take charge of this weekend’s fixture against Bournemouth. Vivell is said to be pushing strongly for Julian Nagelsmann, the former Bayern Munich and Germany head coach who has been without a club since leaving the national side last summer. Wilcox, who sits above Vivell in the club’s hierarchy, reportedly prefers a manager with proven Premier League experience.

Wilcox’s reported shortlist includes Eddie Howe, Fabian Hurzeler, Unai Emery and Antonio Conte — four names with contrasting profiles but a shared familiarity with English football’s demands.

Carrick, speaking after the Como defeat, appeared to set aside any concern about his own position. “Listen, I’ve not given my own position any thought,” he said. “It’s not about me right now and my feelings in that regard. It’s more of as a team and as a football club, what we want to look like, what we should look like. And as I said, the results can come and go at times, but you got to do it in a certain way. And that wasn’t it.”

The situation marks a turbulent moment for United, who would be appointing their third head coach of 2026 should they decide to move on from Carrick. The split between Wilcox and Vivell adds a further layer of instability to a club already struggling for coherence on and off the pitch.