'No doubt' - Michael Carrick WILL be permanent Man Utd manager after 'sensational' run, claims Jamie Carragher

Expectations are mounting that Carrick will be handed the keys to Old Trafford full-time after guiding United to within touching distance of Europe’s elite. Following the Premier League win over Brentford, Carragher insisted there is now "no doubt" that the interim boss will lead the club into next season. The former Liverpool defender was full of praise for the tactical flexibility shown by the former United midfielder since he stepped into the vacuum left by Ruben Amorim.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Carragher emphasised that the interim manager's undeniable results and willingness to tweak his system make him the obvious choice for the permanent job.

"He's going to be the Manchester United manager, certainly next season, no doubt about that - and you can't say he doesn't deserve it," the former Liverpool defender said. "They are absolutely sensational results. They're the results of a title-winning team, or a team going for the league. Now I know that pressure isn't on Manchester United right now, they haven't got European fixtures, all these other things will come into it, but I don't think anybody could have come in and done any better results-wise. The biggest criticism of Ruben Amorin was that he never adapted, Carrick has shown he can adapt."

The United players also seem fully bought into the Carrick revolution. Veteran defender Harry Maguire has been vocal about the shift in confidence within the squad since the managerial change. United currently sit in third, 11 points clear of sixth-placed Brighton, a remarkable turnaround given their struggles earlier in the campaign.

Maguire said: "The results speak for themselves, since the manager has come in, and the formation has changed, we just seemed to pick up results. I think that the games previous, when Ruben was here, the games were 50/50, but we always ended up on the back of a defeat. Now it seems like it's the other way around, where we're a lot better in both boxes. We defend our box a lot better, and we're managing to be clinical in the other box."

He added: "Everyone's believed in it, and we've gathered together. We've got the confidence. We know that we can score goals from anywhere. I think we can still get a lot better at this formation as well. I think we can work as a back force, slide across the pitch a lot quicker, like we should have done."

Gary Neville has also weighed in on the situation, suggesting that Carrick has proven his worth by extracting the absolute maximum from a squad that looked lost earlier in the campaign. According to the former United captain, the interim head coach has demonstrated the "tactical nous" required to manage at the highest level by being agile when matches hang in the balance.

"I think if Michael Carrick was speaking honestly, I think what he'd say... is that he's getting the absolute maximum out of this group of players," Neville noted on his podcast. "Is it 29 points now in 13 games since he came here? That's a brilliant job... They're getting over the line in games now where they're not playing as well. And that's something that you've got to do.

"What he did in the second half [of Brentford game] was saying, 'I've got the tactical nous to do this. It's not just about doing it one way. I can shut down a game,' which he very nearly succeeded in doing. Saying 'I'm a serious manager' in other ways."

With a top-four finish well within reach and resounding endorsements from both the dressing room and prominent pundits, Carrick’s transition from interim boss to permanent manager now appears inevitable.