Manchester United sack Michael Carrick with Mauricio Pochettino appointment close

In a statement released on Thursday, United said that “the club has come to the extremely difficult conclusion that a change is necessary in order to achieve our ambitions” after a “disappointing start to the season” and that they “intend to appoint a permanent successor as quickly as possible”.The club added: “Michael is, and always will be, a Manchester United legend. Just as he did as a player, he has conducted himself with the highest standards of dedication and professionalism throughout his time back with the club.“His leadership and achievements last season will always be fondly remembered.”Carrick took over as United’s interim head coach in January after Ruben Amorim’s departure and was promoted to the full-time job in May after qualifying for the Champions League last season.He has failed to carry that momentum into the new campaign, though, and departs with United mired in the Premier League relegation zone having won only one of their first 10 matches and sitting 17th in the Champions League table.A 4-1 defeat by Como in Europe last month left Carrick on the brink and a 3-0 home loss to Bournemouth then initially looked as though it would be the end of the road, but he was spared the sack and retained for the visit to Chelsea, which the Red Devils lost 2-0. Dismissed: Michael Carrick lasted less than six months as Manchester United’s full-time bossGettyA dramatic 3-2 comeback victory over Roma in the Champions League looked to restore some faith - at least temporarily - but a topsy-turvy performance against Aston Villa in a chaotic 4-4 draw, only salvaged at the death by Patrick Dorgu’s last-gasp equaliser, highlighted the issues the United head coach was facing once more. United parted ways with their former midfielder following a meeting with director of football Jason Wilcox and CEO Omar Berrada at Carrington, where, despite the intense speculation over his position, Carrick had continued to take training this week with United’s players not currently away on international duty.Wilcox and Berrada had been in Monaco on Wednesday for crunch talks with United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, where it was decided that a change in the dugout was needed to turnaround their fortunes.Pochettino is expected to replace Carrick and become the new manager at Old Trafford, despite only signing a new four-year contract to remain in charge of the United States national team following the World Cup on home soil in the summer.An official approach is believed to have been made to US Soccer, with Pochettino’s deal containing a release clause worth $10million (£7.5m). Pochettino is keen on the move and has spoken to United about their managerial position on multiple occasions in the past, with an agreement over personal terms reported to have been reached.Read MorePochettino - who has seen off competition for the job from the likes of ex-Newcastle boss Eddie Howe and former Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann - would become United’s eighth permanent manager since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013.