Michael Carrick was undervalued by England but FA should keep an eye on him despite sacking

While Joe Cole’s suggestion that Michael Carrick might be an ideal successor to Ange Postecoglou seems more than a touch fanciful, can expect no shortage of offers.

After Boro’s tenth-placed finish in last season’s Championship, owner Steve Gibson has clearly deliberated long and hard over Carrick’s fate and the dismissal will not come as a great surprise to many of the club’s supporters.

It is fair to say the reaction to Carrick’s departure from Middlesbrough fans has been mixed. There has certainly been no sense of uproar. But Gibson is letting go of a coach who still has the potential to become an elite operator.

Having been at Middlesbrough for only a few months shy of three years, there is an argument that says Carrick has been given plenty of time. But remember Middlesbrough’s predicament when Carrick took over in October, 2022.

They had 17 points from 16 games and were a point above the relegation zone. Carrick’s impact and influence would see Middlesbrough finish fourth that season before losing to Coventry City in the play-offs.

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Ok, that was two years ago but it was a remarkable spell of management. The ‘decline’ into eighth position in the 2023-24 season and into tenth last season has cost Carrick his job, even though Gibson had given him a new three-year contract last summer.

The stark truth is that tenth place was a disappointment. There were mitigating circumstances, not least the injury to on-loan Liverpool winger Ben Doak and the sale of top scorer Emmanuel Latte Lath in the winter window.

Gibson, though, did back Carrick but certain recruitment decisions did not work out as well as might have been expected. Morgan Whittaker, for example, has not set the club alight since his £5million move from Plymouth Argyle. Despite finishing outside the play-offs, Carrick thought he had a good foundation for a more sustained challenge next season but knows that time is not readily afforded to Championship managers.

In fact, before his dismissal, Carrick had been the longest-serving manager at that level … and had not been in his post for three full seasons. Carrick is still learning.

Should Postecoglou and Spurs part company, Cole reckons Carrick could be a good appointment for Levy. It is safe to assume the chances of that happening are slim and none.

But Carrick only turns 44 next month and, despite this setback, has a very good reputation for a thoughtful coaching approach that was first seen when he was on the staff at Manchester United, the club for whom he played with such distinction. (Don’t forget, in his caretaker spell at Old Trafford, he won two, drew one and lost none.)

As a player, Carrick’s tally of 34 England caps was under-representative of his talent but he is exactly the sort of English coach who the Football Association should be monitoring.

For now, though, he will surely want to get back into club management pretty quickly and while Levy and Tottenham Hotspur are unlikely to come knocking any time soon, someone is going to get a very good coach … and one with a point to prove.

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