Manchester United Eye Antonio Conte as Potential Successor to Carrick

Manchester United have placed Antonio Conte at the top of their list of potential successors to Michael Carrick, according to reports in Italy – but the club’s new powerbrokers at INEOS are, for now, standing firmly behind their manager.

Carrick, who was handed the job on a permanent basis at the end of last season after steering United into the Champions League for 2026/27, is already feeling the heat. Four points from the opening four Premier League games have dragged early-season anxiety back to Old Trafford, just when it looked like the club had found a little stability.

He first took over as interim boss in January 2026 and did enough to convince the hierarchy to make the appointment full-time. That goodwill is being tested.

Conte waits, United wobble

Into that uncertainty steps a familiar name. Corriere della Sera report that United’s co-owners, INEOS, have identified former Chelsea and Juventus coach Conte as their leading candidate if they choose to move on from Carrick.

Conte is currently out of work after leaving Napoli at the end of last season. At 57, he is not short of offers and is understood to be waiting for what he considers the “right project” before jumping back into club management. A club of United’s size, with Champions League football and a squad in need of his trademark edge, fits the profile.

The Italian outlet, relayed by SportWitness and CalcioMercato, claim Conte sits at the very top of United’s shortlist should a change be made. His CV explains why.

Conte has collected 10 major trophies in his career. He built the modern Juventus machine, winning Serie A in 2012, 2013 and 2014. He then snapped Inter Milan’s long title drought with the Scudetto in 2021, before repeating the trick with Napoli in 2025. In England, he stormed to the Premier League crown with Chelsea in 2016/17, his intense touchline presence and tactical discipline reshaping the side in a single season.

If United want a serial winner, there are few more obvious candidates.

INEOS back Carrick – for now

The noise from Italy is loud, but the message from inside Old Trafford is very different.

Transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano insists INEOS are not preparing the trapdoor for Carrick. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Romano stressed that the ownership group remains sold on the project under the former midfielder.

“Man Utd absolutely remain convinced that the future will be bright under Michael Carrick,” he said, outlining a hierarchy that still believes the manager is the right man to lead this squad.

Romano also highlighted United’s summer transfer stance. The club wanted a left-back but refused to sign one for the sake of it. They explored options, then walked away when they felt the right profile was not available at the right price. The decision left a gap in the squad, but, crucially, it did not shake their belief in Carrick.

“They wanted to be convinced about the player they were going to sign, and so that’s why nothing happened,” Romano explained, adding that United “maintain total faith and confidence” in their manager despite the flat league start.

Four points from four games is not the launch anyone at the club envisaged. The Champions League opener, which United won last week, has offered some respite, but the domestic table tells a harsher story. Even so, Romano is clear: there is no immediate plan to sack Carrick.

The manager himself, he says, is equally unwavering. The bullish tone Carrick strikes in public – insisting the team will “do very well” and that the squad is good enough to deliver – mirrors what he tells the board behind closed doors. He believes this group can click in the coming weeks, particularly once the international break allows time to reset.

So United stand at a familiar crossroads. On one side, a proven, title-winning disciplinarian in Conte, waiting for the right phone call. On the other, a young coach in Carrick, trusted by his bosses and convinced his project just needs time.

How long that conviction holds if results don’t turn will define United’s season – and perhaps shape the next era at Old Trafford.