Carrick's shambolic Manchester United exit placed alongside Premier League's botched sackings

What happened

Michael Carrick's departure from Manchester United was handled so poorly that Football365 placed it alongside some of the most shambolic managerial sackings in Premier League history, arguing the club botched even a decision it may have got right. The report said Carrick turned up at Carrington to take training for a third consecutive day as United's lame-duck manager while it was widely known that Mauricio Pochettino would soon arrive to replace him. News of United's intent to hire Pochettino broke on Monday night, when journalists were briefed that the club's decision-makers were minded to sack Carrick but that no decision had been taken yet. Jason Wilcox and Omar Berrada then had to fly to Monaco on Wednesday to discuss the matter with Sir Jim Ratcliffe, a sequence the outlet described as hardly prompt.

Report details

The report acknowledged that Carrick, a club legend and fan favourite, would understand better than most how the board operates, but still called it an astonishing way to treat anyone. It then listed other top-flight managers it said deserved more decency, starting with Louis van Gaal, who was officially sacked two days after winning the 2016 FA Cup with United. News of the decision leaked almost immediately after the 2-1 final win over Crystal Palace at Wembley, and the first person to tell Van Gaal was his wife, Truus, who recalled him saying they had done it and her replying that people were saying he had been fired. Van Gaal later told Algemeen Dagblad that he was informed only after the leak, calling it the biggest disappointment of his life and saying the club had put his head in a noose and placed him publicly on the gallows. He said he made United pay every penny of his final year's salary after the episode, and Jose Mourinho was confirmed as his replacement by the end of that working week.

Mark Hughes was sacked by Manchester City in December 2009 after two wins in 11 games following a £120million summer spend, a decision the report said was leaked to The Sun before kick-off of a 4-3 win over Sunderland that Hughes was made to oversee. City confirmed his exit and Roberto Mancini's arrival less than 90 minutes after that match. Assistant Mark Bowen recalled being called by a journalist on his way to the game and finding Hughes already aware of the news, describing the situation as surreal while saying Hughes stayed professional and focused on winning. Hughes waved to City fans before being officially relieved between radio interviews and his post-match media duties.

Martin Jol's Tottenham exit in 2007 spread mid-match during a 2-1 defeat, with the report noting conflicting accounts of when he was actually told. Some suggested he knew before a UEFA Cup defeat at Getafe, while Darren Bent claimed Ledley King told him at half-time; Jol later insisted he learned of his fate from his nephew immediately after the final whistle, with Juande Ramos's appointment imminent. Chairman Daniel Levy admitted Spurs got it wrong, saying events did not happen as wished and could have been handled better, but that the first meeting to discuss Jol's position came after the match.

Ruud Gullit learned of his Chelsea sacking in February 1998 via Teletext, according to the report, midway through his second season as player-manager with the club second in the Premier League and still in the League Cup and UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. Contract talks had stalled amid claim and counter-claim over his terms, and Chelsea hastily arranged a press conference to confirm his sacking and Gianluca Vialli's replacement. Gullit, who learned the news from page 140, held his own press conference the next day, saying he was very upset to hear of his sacking through the press, that money was not the real reason, and that he would leave with his head held high.

Gus Poyet was also strung along long enough to take training at Sunderland despite his fate being sealed and leaked, the report said, comparing his situation to Carrick's. In mid-March 2015 Sunderland were a point above the relegation zone after one win in 12, and a home thrashing by Aston Villa, with the visitors 4-0 up at half-time and half the Stadium of Light crowd walking out in protest, prompted the club to approach Dick Advocaat. Sunderland scheduled a meeting with Poyet for Monday afternoon, but he was made to oversee training beforehand. The report added that Poyet's strangest sacking came at Brighton in 2013, when he learned of it while working as a BBC pundit during the Confederations Cup.