Three Bournemouth goals, a dropped captain and an eight-match winless run have put Michael Carrick’s job in open question.
Rayan opened the scoring in the 38th minute and Marcus Tavernier added a second five minutes later, before Evanilson finished the job on 70 minutes at Old Trafford. Bournemouth deserved every goal.
Carrick’s selection made the loss harder to absorb. He dropped captain Bruno Fernandes to the bench for the full 90 minutes, a decision Sky Sports reported was a response to Fernandes publicly criticizing his tactics after the 4-1 Champions League defeat to Como.
United are 16th, a point above the relegation zone and eight matches without a win in all competitions.
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Howe at 4/6, Nagelsmann at 5/2
Director of football Jason Wilcox favors Eddie Howe as the successor if the board moves, with the former Newcastle manager installed as the 4/6 odds-on favorite by Sky Bet. Julian Nagelsmann is next at 5/2, with Antonio Conte at 5/1 and Unai Emery at 17/2.
Howe left Newcastle in the summer and has been out of work since. Two factors tip the balance in his favor at Old Trafford: he is immediately available with no compensation attached, and his Premier League record is the metric Wilcox prizes above all. No formal approach has been made by either side.
The appointment would carry squad consequences. FootballTransfers’ analysis warned Marcus Rashford could struggle to fit a Howe side built around athletic, high-pressing attackers unless his out-of-possession work improves.
Carragher: ‘Relieved of his duties tonight’
The pundits watching from the Sky Sports studio did not wait for the final whistle to call for the sack.
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“Michael Carrick needs to be relieved of his duties tonight,” Jamie Carragher said on the broadcast.
“It is going to get ridiculously difficult for Michael Carrick to be Manchester United manager moving forward,” Gary Neville added on the same programme.
Carrick himself gave the shortest answer of the evening.
“What is next? I don’t know. I’ll always do what’s best for this football club,” he told reporters after the match.
