Man Utd allowing Mauricio Pochettino to coach final USMNT matches shows Red Devils' board still don't understand how real relegation danger is

United have verbally agreed terms with Pochettino before making contact with U.S. Soccer to conclude a deal for the former Chelsea and Tottenham boss. However, it is still business as usual for the USMNT and Pochettino ahead of the team's two-legged Concacaf Nations League quarter-final tie against Haiti.

Pochettino has been putting the players through their paces at the National Training Center outside of Atlanta, and U.S. Soccer expects him to be on the touchline for both matches. The first leg will take place in Miami on Saturday, while the second in Cincinnati is pencilled in for Tuesday. That means that Pochettino won't be free to travel to England until Wednesday, November 18 at the very earliest, likely leaving him just three full days to prepare for United's trip to Anfield to face Liverpool in the Premier League.

But why on earth are INEOS not demanding Pochettino's immediate presence at Carrington?! Do they seriously not realise how important that fixture is? Are they really prepared to just mark it down as another likely defeat before the proper work starts?

It's entirely possible that Pochettino won't have more than one or two training sessions with his new squad before the Liverpool clash. Of course, United could still get a result at Anfield, and several players are away on international duty now anyway, but it would have made complete sense to get Pochettino's focus locked onto the task at hand as soon as feasibly possible.

He could have at least got his basic ideology across and made system roles clear. Instead, Carrick had another two days overseeing training, knowing full well he was about to be sacked purely by watching the news or scrolling on his phone. It would be completely understandable if the former midfielder had just been going through the motions while holding in his anger, and the uncertainty probably caused a big drop in intensity on the training pitch.

United CEO Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox met with Ratcliffe in Monaco on Wednesday to review the club's nightmare start to the season, and Carrick was finally informed of his departure on Thursday morning. It's a safe bet that he would have preferred a quick video call to that slow death, with his former United team-mate Gary Neville correctly describing INEOS' handling of the situation as "clumsy" and "classless" on the 'Stick to Football' podcast.

"You can't leave a guy hanging for 48 hours just because you live in Monaco," Neville added.

INEOS should have terminated Carrick's two-year contract three weeks ago, after United were beaten 3-0 by Bournemouth at Old Trafford. It was obvious then that the season was descending into farce, and yet Carrick was given a stay of execution that benefitted no one.

The performances improved slightly thereafter as United went down 2-0 at Chelsea before pulling off a 3-2 comeback win over Roma in the Champions League and playing out a chaotic 4-4 draw with Aston Villa. There was enough evidence of the players fighting for Carrick, but not that he had found any way to plug the gaping holes at the back that have made United the third-worst defensive side in the Premier League.

Pochettino is not a wizard who can magically fix that, but he would have got them more organised by ditching Carrick's 'half-press' for his trademark full-throttle high one. United might then have picked up between four and six points from those games against Chelsea and Villa instead of one, and avoided the embarrassment of sitting in the relegation zone for two weeks.

That's all on Ratcliffe, Berrada and Wilcox. All that trio has been good for since INEOS' minority takeover is wasting time, with the Carrick saga mirroring how they kept blind faith in Erik ten Hag for too long.

You would have to assume that Pochettino will have asked for assurances before signing on the dotting line with United, too, namely regarding much control he will have on the recruitment side, and what funds are available for transfers. INEOS have so far given managers a limited budget in a bid to manage the crippling debts racked up by the Glazers in their capacity as majority owners, with Wilcox putting a three-tiered plan in place.

An attacking overhaul took place in the 2025 summer window before focus switched to the midfield in the last window, and the defence is due to be addressed at the end of the current season. However, it was painfully clear to everyone but Wilcox that United's backline needed emergency surgery, and Carrick paid the price for his superior's ineptitude.

Pochettino must be given reinforcements in January if he is to save the campaign. Without them, he can bring stability, but not European qualification.

"If I was Mauricio Pochettino now, I would be literally protecting myself up to the high heaven," Neville added. "He’ll do that with a pay-off. So do that in your contract. But secondly, he needs two defenders in January... He’s got to insist that he gets a minimum budget next summer. He’s got to insist that he gets a budget that follows. They have to give it to him or else he shouldn’t take the job."

Neville concluded that United are a "f*cking shambles" these days, and it's impossible to disagree. Pochettino is a brilliant appointment, and the most qualified coach at Old Trafford since Jose Mourinho, but he's been hamstrung by the bumbling board already, and there's no chance of him enjoying a smooth ride with their oversight.