Simon Evans

MANCHESTER (Reuters) – Manchester United fired manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer Sunday after a defeat of promoted Watford, which left Old Trafford seventh in the Premier League.

Solskjaer former player Michael Carrick will be taking charge of United’s Champions League match against Villarreal. The club said they would then seek an interim manager who will lead the team until the end.

Norwegian Solskjaer had signed a three-year contract extension until 2024 https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-soccer-england-mun-solskjaer-idUKKBN2EU0BL in July but he was dismissed after United lost five of their last seven league games, including defeats by Aston Villa, Leicester City, Liverpool and Manchester City.

Manchester United has announced that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is leaving his position as manager. Ole will always be a legend at Manchester United and it is with regret that we have reached this difficult decision,” United said in a statement https://www.manutd.com/en/news/detail/man-utd-statement-on-ole-gunnar-solskjaer.

Although the past weeks have been difficult, these should not distract from all the hard work he’s done in the last three years to build foundations for success over the long-term.

United haven’t won the Premier League in the last three seasons under Alex Ferguson, who led them to victory in 2013.

In August, Cristiano Ronaldo was signed by the club as a Portuguese forward. However, after an impressive start to the campaign, they are now seventh after twelve games. This is 12 points less than leaders Chelsea.

INTERIM BASIS

Jose Mourinho’s December 2018 replacement was Solskjaer. He initially took the role on an interim basis. However, after leading United to 14 wins from 19 matches in all competitions, Solskjaer was appointed permanent manager in March 2019.

In Solskjaer’s first two full seasons as manager, United displayed signs of improvement to place third and second in league. However, their performance has slowed down in this campaign.

On Oct. 16, Leicester City was defeated 4-2. Liverpool then suffered a humiliating 5-0 defeat at home. Tottenham Hotspur’s 3-0 victory raised hope of a revival. However, Solskjaer was unable to recover from the losses.

Although a 2-0 defeat to Manchester City champions was not unexpected, they were completely outclassed in the end by Pep Guardiola’s team who played with United all of the match.

United was left with no choice than to change after a 4-1 loss by Watford.

This club’s hierarchy includes Joel Glazer (owner) and Ed, the outgoing executive vice chairman. Woodward (NASDAQ) – The company has long been opposed by fans. This unusual decision to name Carrick “pre-interim manager” will bring out the eyebrows.

While it’s common for clubs to temporarily place members of their coaching staff while they look for a permanent boss, this isn’t the right way for clubs to say they are seeking an interim manager.

Zinedine Zidane (ex-coach of Real Madrid, France) has been selected by bookmakers to become the club’s next permanent manager.