Man Utd take big step under Michael Carrick after Gary Neville claims he is in 'box seat' for permanent job

Gary Neville's pre-match claim that Michael Carrick was in the box seat for the Manchester United job looked to have backfired when Maxence Lacroix headed Crystal Palace in front after four minutes at Old Trafford.

However, United came from behind to win 2-1 against 10-man Palace and move up to third in the Premier League for the first time since May 2023 as Carrick extended his unbeaten run to seven games with his sixth victory since succeeding Ruben Amorim.

The Sky Sports pundit had warned his former team-mate of the risk Palace posed as United looked to capitalise on Aston Villa's surprise slip at Wolves to strengthen their chances of Champions League qualification.

"The run they have been on has been a shock to everybody," said Neville of United pre-game. "Michael would not have expected this in his wildest dreams.

"He has to keep it going until the end of the season. Today is a big part of that. These games can trip you up.

"Michael is in the box seat for the job. Looking at what is happening now, I think they will qualify for the Champions League."

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United played their worst half an hour of football under Carrick in the first half against Palace when it seemed Neville's warning had fallen on deaf ears.

But the players once again showed a resilience that was not always present under the previous head coach to regain their composure before the break. Had Casemiro headed in unmarked at the back post they could have gone in level.

Carrick's side were firmly on top after the restart but Lacroix's second-half sending off, thanks to the intervention of VAR, swung the game entirely in their favour.

Bruno Fernandes scored from the subsequent spot-kick and set up Benjamin Sesko's winner as United avoided defeat when going behind for a third time since Carrick took over.

"It was a test for us going in a goal down at half-time," Carrick told Sky Sports. "New for us. We didn't start the game great, credit to Palace they did. We grew into the game as the half went on. Second half, we stepped up again.

"It was a big thing to overcome being a goal down at home so early against a team that are tough to break down. It was a big step for us. I was really happy with the way the boys approached that and reacted to it."

Neville's latest comments are significant given his stance when Carrick arrived. He said in January that Carrick should not be considered for the job next season "even if he wins every single game".

Even though Carrick has not met those lofty standards, he has the joint-best points return after nine Premier League games of any manager in the competition's history, including his caretaker spell in 2021 (W1, D1).

Only Ange Postecoglou's 23 points in nine games at the start of his tenure at Spurs matches Carrick. He is only three games off equalling Maurizio Sarri's record for longest unbeaten start, too.

A good start is no guarantee of long-term success, just look at how things ended for Postecoglou at Spurs, but it is no wonder the results have caught Neville off guard. United had won just once in the seven games preceeding Carrick.

"I am surprised at where Michael [Carrick] has taken them from what we were seeing around Christmas time," said Neville earlier on Sunday.

"The performance levels against Arsenal and City were incredible. I didn't expect that."

There has no doubt been a dip since those huge wins against the Premier League's title chasers with United less effective against teams when they are expected to dominate.

However, Carrick has continued to come up with in-game solutions and had an answer for every problem. He seems to coach with the same composure he played with and it is rubbing off on the team.

The United boss could be seen running down the tunnel when the whistle blew after a disappointing first half. Asked if he had specific changes in mind at that time, he said, chuckling: "There's always something."

"It was just a couple tweaks in shape and few ideas," he added. "Some things we tried from the start we wanted to tweak a little bit, but it wasn't major and I am not taking much credit for that.

"The boys showed as the first half progressed that it was on the way to getting better. You have to find a way in games sometimes. We wanted to make a few more runs, be a bit more aggressive in attacking their backlline and ended up getting the penalty from that.

"It was more the how would we react. It has been going in our favour [in games] and I have been waiting for this moment. What would we do about it? The boys responded ever so well."

This scenario was unimaginable not long ago yet it is growing increasingly harder to envisage a world in which Carrick does not get the job full-time. Carrick has made restoring the feel-good factor to Old Trafford look easy.

"It is nice," Carrick said of the fans singing his name. "This place means a lot to me. So having so much positivity and me having an influence on that of course it feels good.

"The players have got to take a lot of credit. It's certainly not all me."

Carrick is far more understated than his predecessor but results are ramping up the noise around his future. There will be questions about it after every game for the rest of the season. It is unavoidable.

United are right to bide their time. This is a path they have trodden before, not long ago. Given how quickly the mood can change with a few results, and the number of false dawns United have endured, it would be foolish to rush.

However, if Neville is anything to go by, even the biggest doubters are having to reconsider their view on Carrick.

(c) Sky Sports 2026: Man Utd take big step under Michael Carrick after Gary Neville claims he is in 'box seat' for permanent job