As Michael Carrick nears becoming the seventh permanent Manchester United manager to lose his job in the last 13 years, the overriding feeling is one of regret.

Carrick leaves with widespread sympathy from all around. This is nothing like the acrimony of when Ruben Amorim was sacked for telling too many home truths as sparks flew. His explosive press conference at Leeds United appeared to be the death knell for the under-pressure coach, but in truth he already knew his fate, with the decision already made before the January trip to Elland Road.

The general consensus after Carrick’s departure is that the club rested on their laurels far too much after such a positive end to last season.

‘Broken promises’

According to United insiders, senior figures were baffled by the fact that only one area of the squad had been strengthened at the start of the new campaign.

The defence was left desperately short and there was no fit and firing No 9 – nor was there any alternative to injury-plagued Luke Shaw at left-back, which caused particular irritation.

“He [Carrick] was let down, and some at the club are coming to that realisation now,” one source added.

The mood in the dressing room is understood to mirror that of senior figures. As Lisandro Martinez pointed out two weeks ago in Madrid, the general feeling among the players is that United’s problems run way beyond the manager.

Bruno Fernandes was less enamoured by Carrick – it is understood the skipper is considering a future away from United “now more than ever”, with sources citing “broken promises” over squad investment and overall objectives. The pair did patch things up after Carrick elected to drop his skipper from the starting XI, but their relationship is unlikely to stand the test of time.

Low morale

Unlike with Amorim, there has been no major fallout with the former midfielder. Carrick is, however, understood to have been disappointed at the lack of investment in the team. In a rare moment when he spoke more honestly about his feelings towards the club’s transfer strategy at the summer training camp in Dublin, Carrick repeatedly insisted the squad needed more. That wish was not granted.

Morale was nonetheless high ahead of the start to the season. A lack of the usual exhausting pre-season tour in far-flung destinations meant energy levels kept the mood vibrant.

Riding on a crest of a wave could only take United so far, with teams having had a summer to work Carrick’s game plan out. And a lack of an alternative approach soon saw things unravel in a desperate fashion.

The drop-off in energy is what has baffled insiders most. United have been outrun by every single Premier League opponent this term, apart from 10-man Manchester City.

Holland takes a backseat

Carrick’s backroom staff drew much praise last season for how well they complemented each other. Steve Holland brought some much-needed experience to the training pitch, while Jonathan Woodgate, Jonny Evans and Travis Binnion all bonded well with the players.

However, several sources indicated they noticed a decline in intensity during training. One insider insisted Holland has taken a more backseat role in recent months, which has contributed to the drop in training standards.

The 3-0 humiliation at home to Bournemouth three weeks ago appeared to be the final straw, but Carrick was granted a stay of execution until this international break. The club’s leadership group needed to see something drastic, and while things did improve slightly, and the players were willing to fight for the manager, the marginal uptick was not seen as enough and Carrick is expected to be relieved of his duties on Thursday.

The club were willing to change their entire strategy and get behind Amorim, making a real song and dance about their first “head coach” rather than a manager, working within their “best in the class” structure – but they were effectively backed into a corner with Carrick after last season’s third-placed finish.

For the remainder his first Premier League season, no other manager took more points than Carrick since he was appointed on a temporary basis in January. Therefore, the club felt they had to bow to supporter opinion and give the interim boss a permanent role, with other high-profile targets just not interested.

Yet sources suggested the length of Carrick’s contract showed the club’s true feelings. While Erik ten Hag received a three-year deal with an option for an additional year and Amorim got the same, Carrick’s was a two-year contract.

The club’s hierarchy could not give him a one-year deal, as that hardly represented any form of true backing, but a two-year contract instead suggested they were still unconvinced that Carrick would be the one to restore the club to its former glories.

It was half-expected given his lack of experience at the highest level, but Carrick was ultimately seen as out of his depth. He leaves with supporters still singing his name – something few others have experienced by the end.

His likely successor Mauricio Pochettino will face many of the same problems and have to drive the club back up the table with a demoralised, ill-equipped squad.

All under the stewardship of a hierarchical structure not fit for purpose – what many believe to be the crux of the dizzying decay spiral United cannot fight their way out of.