Former Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino is on the verge of taking over Michael Carrick's position at Manchester United

Mauricio Pochettino is on the verge of being appointed Manchester United head coach, with Michael Carrick set to be relieved of his duties.

A report from The Athletic claims Man United are finalising a deal for Pochettino to become their next head coach with Carrick on the brink of losing his job at Old Trafford. United have entered the second international break of the season in the Premier League relegation zone after a torrid start to the new campaign.

Pochettino, who is the USMNT boss at the time of writing, is seen as the man to come in and steady the United ship. The Argentine's last job in England came at Chelsea, where he lasted one season before he and the Blues reached a mutual agreement over his departure.

FOLLOW OUR CHELSEA FB PAGE! Latest Blues news, analysis and much more via our dedicated Facebook page

Despite signing a two-year contract at Stamford Bridge, BlueCo always planned a halfway point review and that ended in a break-up between the two parties. Chelsea ended Pochettino's sole campaign in sixth in the Premier League after a brilliant conclusion, and finished runners-up in the Carabao Cup, while being knocked out of the FA Cup at the semi-final stage.

In a fascinating interview earlier this year with FourFourTwo, where Pochettino reflected on his turbulent time at Chelsea, the former Tottenham boss said he also didn't want to stay at Stamford Bridge.

"Chelsea were broken when I arrived," claimed Pochettino. "There were young players making their debuts that season, and there had been many defeats at Stamford Bridge.

"The momentum was negative. The aim was to stop the slide, start building again, restore belief and give the players the chance to perform."

He added: "We ended that season by winning five straight league games and finished in sixth - if we'd had one more month, we would have qualified for the Champions League."

Pochettino, though, did not have one more month and instead was relieved of his duties at Stamford Bridge. "I didn't want to continue," revealed Pochettino. "That was my decision.

"I spoke with Chelsea, but my staff and I were clear about our position. We felt we didn't belong to the club's way of doing things. We helped stabilise Chelsea, but had no interest in staying."