Man Utd can lure Vinicius Junior away from Real Madrid if Michael Carrick gets permanent manager job, claims Louis Saha

Brazilian superstar Vinicius appears to be happier in the Spanish capital at present than he was under Xabi Alonso, with heads being butted with the Blancos’ former boss; Alvaro Arbeloa is now overseeing first-team affairs on a caretaker basis.

United have their own interim boss at the helm, in the form of Carrick, and have fired themselves back into contention for Champions League qualification. A return to elite European competition would make it easier for the Red Devils to lure top talents onto their books, while also offering a timely boost to recruitment coffers.

Amid the talk of Vinicius - who has also seen a move to the Saudi Pro League mooted - potentially leaving Madrid, ex-United striker Saha has told aceodds.com of the South American heading to the Premier League: “Nothing is too big when Man United are playing the way they are playing. They can attract any big name.

“Vinicius is obviously a Ballon d'Or contender, definitely someone looking to shine, to be in a Champions League spot. I know that because he wants to win individual trophies. Who knows, that could be a very attractive combination - the team that we see week in, week out with Carrick, playing very attractive football. So it may provide a new platform for a player like Vinicius Jr.”

United are yet to decide who another transfer war chest will be handed to, with Carrick appointed on a short-term basis through to the end of the 2025-26 campaign. He has overseen four successive victories over Manchester City, Arsenal, Fulham and Tottenham.

Saha, who once played alongside Carrick at Old Trafford, believes his former team-mate should be considered for the top job on a permanent basis - even if the likes of Carlo Ancelotti and Zinedine Zidane are also in the mix.

Saha added: “I would love to see Michael given the chance. He's done very well. He's a very hardworking guy but humble as well. The results are going for him at the moment but not only the results, the way the team is playing and performing, we all can see the change straightaway. He's had the biggest impact since Sir Alex Ferguson.

“He does provide an answer to the question about the next manager. I do think they need to think about Carrick very, very, very seriously there.

“We know the expectation is so big and sometimes clubs have certain types of conversations and they want to see a long term plan. Do they see this is a spell where everything is going well for Carrick? Who knows how he reacts when he's under more pressure. So maybe he needs to be challenged in that sense to be considered for the full-time role. I don't know.

“What I see is that he understands the DNA of the club, he's been under pressure, maybe not as a manager but as a player, he understands how those managers have reacted before as he was part of the coaching staff. So he understands. He's not a rookie. So I do think he deserves his position but when names like Ancelotti, Zidane come into play, it's a kind of a different ball game.”

Saha is pleasantly surprised to have seen Carrick step into coaching, having struggled to see that being a path that the ex-England international would tread when working alongside one another in a playing capacity.

He did, however, spend time in the backroom staff of Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer before stepping out on his own at Middlesbrough. The most demanding of Premier League posts is now being filled, with United set to be back in action on Tuesday when taking in a trip to relegation-threatened West Ham.