Manchester United Eye Antonio Conte as Pressure Mounts on Carrick
Manchester United’s early-season stumble has already sparked talk of a seismic change in the dugout – with Antonio Conte emerging as the leading name on the club’s radar.
According to the September 15 print edition of Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, United’s co-owners, INEOS, have identified the former Chelsea and Juventus boss as their preferred candidate should they decide to move on from Michael Carrick.
For now, that remains a contingency plan rather than an active mission. The tension, though, is unmistakable.
Carrick under scrutiny after slow start
Carrick walked into this season with the glow of a job secured on merit. Promoted from interim to permanent manager at the end of last term, he had guided United to Champions League qualification for the 2026/27 campaign after taking over on a temporary basis in January 2026.
That momentum has stalled.
United have collected just four points from their opening four Premier League fixtures. One win, one draw, two defeats – a modest return that has already sharpened the debate about whether Carrick can carry a heavyweight club through a full campaign.
A Champions League victory last week briefly eased the noise. It didn’t silence it.
Conte waits, United watch
Into that uncertainty steps a familiar name. Conte, 57, is currently out of work after leaving Napoli at the end of last season and is understood to be waiting for what he considers the right project before returning to club management.
Corriere della Sera, relayed by SportWitness and CalcioMercato, reports that Conte sits at the very top of United’s shortlist if INEOS choose to dismiss Carrick. No talks are reported as done, no agreement in place – but the hierarchy are said to see him as the prime option.
His CV explains why.
Conte has collected 10 major trophies across a demanding career. He delivered the Premier League title to Chelsea in 2016/17, turned Juventus into a domestic machine with three straight Serie A crowns in 2012, 2013 and 2014, then broke Inter Milan’s long wait for the Scudetto in 2021. Most recently, he steered Napoli to the Italian title in 2025.
He is proven, abrasive, demanding – and available. That combination always catches attention at Old Trafford.
INEOS stance: Carrick safe “for now”
Italian headlines may be pushing the Conte–United narrative, but the message from inside the club is different.
Transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano, speaking on his YouTube channel, reported that INEOS are not preparing to sack Carrick at this stage and remain convinced he can lead a revival.
“Man Utd absolutely remain convinced that the future will be bright under Michael Carrick,” Romano said, adding that the ownership accept they came up short in one key area of the summer transfer window: a new left-back.
United tried to strengthen there, Romano explained, but walked away when they could not find what they viewed as the right profile at the right price. The club, he said, refused to sign a player simply to tick a box.
The result is a squad that looks one body light in a crucial position, and a manager working under early-season scrutiny with only four points from four league games to show for it.
Even so, Romano stressed that INEOS “maintain total faith and confidence” in Carrick. The poor start has disappointed the hierarchy, but not shaken their belief that the Englishman can turn the season around.
Carrick’s own conviction
Inside the dressing room and in front of the cameras, Carrick has projected calm. He has insisted publicly that United will “do very well,” that he is “confident” in this group and that the team is good enough to climb.
According to Romano, that is not a media act. Those close to the situation say Carrick is delivering the same message behind closed doors, telling the club he believes this squad can perform at a far higher level in the coming weeks and months, particularly once the international break passes and the schedule settles.
He is not talking like a man braced for the axe. He is talking like a manager who thinks he can still bend the season to his will.
The shadow on the touchline
And yet, the shadow remains. Conte, with his track record of instant impact and domestic titles, looms over the situation.
United’s ownership may not be ready to pull the trigger now, but they are clearly scanning the landscape and lining up options. Conte, for his part, is waiting for the kind of project that matches his ambitions and demands.
If United’s form fails to improve, those two paths could converge quickly.
For Carrick, the equation is brutally simple: turn performances into points, or risk watching one of Europe’s most relentless winners stride into his technical area.
