After overseeing a 2-0 win against Manchester City in his first match in charge, Manchester United’s caretaker head coach Michael Carrick will face a tough test in his next game.
The Red Devils cruised to victory in the Manchester derby on Saturday afternoon, but now face a daunting trip to London to face Premier League leaders Arsenal on Sunday.
Carrick was appointed as United’s caretaker head coach until the end of the current campaign, following the dismissal of Ruben Amorim earlier this month.
The Portuguese had been at Old Trafford for around 14 months before departing, with Darren Fletcher taking charge of two matches before Carrick’s appointment.
Now, it has emerged that Manchester United have included a surprise candidate on their shortlist of potential managerial targets.
As per Rudy Galetti, Man United have added Borussia Dortmund manager Niko Kovac to their list of candidates to become their new head coach.
Kovac has emerged as a potential candidate to become Manchester United manager (Photo: DPA Picture Alliance Archive/Alamy)
Kovac, 54, took charge of Dortmund in February 2025 and has since won 31 of his 52 matches in charge across all competitions.
So far this season his side have won 11 of their 18 games and sit second in the Bundesliga table, 11 points behind leaders and defending champions, Bayern Munich.
The German-born Croatian is an experienced manager who has previously had spells in charge of several clubs including Monaco, Eintracht Frankfurt and Bayern Munich, as well as a period in charge of the Croatia national side.
It is also claimed that Chelsea briefly considered exploring the idea of appointing Kovac as Enzo Maresca’s successor, before instead opting to hire Liam Rosenior.
Galetti suggests that, while the Blues were exploring the idea of appointing Kovac, the Croat made it clear that he would not consider leaving Dortmund midway through the current campaign.
