Kieran McKenna is no longer a contender for the Manchester United head coach role after Michael Carrick’s positive start in an interim capacity.
Ruben Amorim was sacked as Manchester United head coach at the beginning of January.
The 40-year-old had a difficult 14 months at Old Trafford, which included losing the 2025 Europa League final against Tottenham, and he left without issuing a single message to the United fans who rallied behind his team, win, lose or draw.
Carrick’s arrival coincided with a four-game win streak before United drew 1-1 against West Ham on Tuesday night.
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Although Carrick has enjoyed a strong start as interim head coach, United don’t plan on making a quick decision, as they did with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in March 2019.
The only way Carrick can make a case for himself at the end of the season is by guiding United to Champions League qualification. Even at that, there are no guarantees that would be enough to land him the job beyond this season.
United have until the end of the season to assess their options for the head coach role.
Kieran McKenna no longer in contention for Man Utd job
Four contenders were drawn up on a shortlist after Amorim was sacked, with a view to monitoring them with the prospect of hiring one as permanent head coach at the end of the season.
The list included Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner, who has endured a difficult spell at Selhurst Park, with his contract set to expire in the summer.
Other names on the list included former Chelsea and Leicester City boss Enzo Maresca, Germany’s Julian Nagelsmann, and Ipswich Town’s Kieran McKenna.
There were whispers of England manager Thomas Tuchel being a target, but a new two-year deal means he’s unlikely to be moving to Old Trafford anytime soon.
However, an update from reliable journalist Ben Jacobs suggests that Carrick’s run as interim head coach has temporarily paused United’s plans to consider McKenna for the job.
McKenna worked alongside Carrick under Solskjaer, but he is currently in the process of pushing for promotion back to the Premier League as Ipswich Town manager.
Jacobs told The United Stand that it looks like McKenna can forget the job for now, saying: “Kieran McKenna, let’s not forget, was also part of the first process as well.
“But my sense with McKenna is if Manchester United go down the route of this so-called United DNA with a younger coach, then as long as Carrick continues performing as is, there would be no reason to necessarily try and bring McKenna back over offering Carrick the role.
“So, although the West Ham draw was somewhat disappointing, Carrick’s form at the moment warrants him being part of the conversation, and that hasn’t gone unnoticed at Manchester United.”
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The one factor we can take from this update is that Carrick has overtaken McKenna on the candidates list.
It also means that if United are to go down the route of appointing a coach with ‘United DNA’, Carrick is likely to the top contender in that category.
Ipswich Town stats under Kieran McKenna this season
Ipswich Town stuck with McKenna after they suffered relegation from the Premier League last season.
McKenna warranted that patience after back-to-back promotions in his first two seasons at the club.
This season, on their quest back to the top flight, Ipswich have won 16 of their 32 matches, drawing nine and losing seven.
Ipswich Town need to finish the season strongly to secure automatic promotion back to the Premier League.
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