Manchester United may reportedly be leaning towards hiring Eddie Howe as their preferred potential replacement for the struggling Michael Carrick.

Howe is highly respected in the game, and is now available after deciding to leave Newcastle United in the summer, so it makes sense that he’s being strongly linked with the Man Utd job after their dire start to the season.

Still, it seems Howe was also previously considered by the Red Devils during Dan Ashworth’s time at Old Trafford as he’d previously worked with the English tactician at St James’ Park.

At that time, however, it seems United owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe snubbed Howe in favour of hiring Ruben Amorim, according to the Athletic.

Will Manchester United now go back in for Eddie Howe?

Howe looks like a tempting option for United, but at the same time it seems like Carrick is still expected to be safe for a bit longer.

According to the Athletic, the 45-year-old is still currently set to be in charge of MUFC for this weekend’s Premier League game against Bournemouth, and he’ll take his press conference later today.

Time must be running out for Carrick, though, with another poor result against Bournemouth surely likely to be the final straw.

The availability of someone like Howe will also surely make it harder for Carrick to keep his job, as there’s little justification for sticking with a struggling and inexperienced manager when more proven names are out there and ready to take over.

Want more CaughtOffside coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust

Perhaps United should have hired Howe in the past, but fans also won’t be too bothered if the club can at least correct that error now and get the team moving back in the right direction again.