Michael Carrick responds to Man Utd reality as club eye candidates to replace him

Michael Carrick insists he isn't bothered about the prospect of Manchester United looking elsewhere for a new manager as he claimed "it's pretty obvious it's going to be a process". The former player turned coach has led a renaissance at Old Trafford, surpassing all expectations with 10 wins from his 14 games in charge. It means United will return to the Champions League and Carrick's audition could hardly have gone better. He was only put in charge until the end of the season, when the original expectation was that he'd step aside as the club's sought a major name. No opinion is split on whether Carrick should be handed the United job given what he's achieved, but there has been no official announcement. The former Middlesbrough manager has had to go about his business whilst speculation persists that the bosses on the red side of Manchester are scouring the market for someone to take on his role, but he insists that has never bothered him and he fully expected that to be the case. Quizzed on whether he might find the situation uncomfortable, he replied: "No, genuinely not. Whether it's discussed or not discussed, it hasn't bothered me. "It hasn't changed how I go about it. I've been confident in the work that we're doing and working with the players and leading the club, so it literally hasn't had any effect on me at all no. I think it's pretty obvious it's going to be a process, obviously from the outset in terms of finding someone to fill the position in the end." Since being at the helm Carrick has beaten the likes of Manchester City , Arsenal , Liverpool and Aston Villa . His impact since taking over from Ruben Amorim has been instant and the likes of Matheus Cunha and Casemiro have publicly claimed he should get the job full-time. Carrick added: "I think as a coach or manager, you're only a leader of a group if people want to follow you. It's not a thing that you can talk about so much, it's actions that prove that. So when I feel the support and I feel that the boys are all connected – not so much with me, but showing it together on the pitch – that’s the most important thing. "They've clearly shown that in different ways, and that's the most pleasing thing. It's satisfying when you can see them putting it together as a team." Join our new WhatsApp community! Click this link to receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.