Antonio Conte 'tops Man United shortlist' to replace Michael Carrick

· Mirror

Michael Carrick insisted he wasn't concerned by any pressure on his position at Manchester United despite falling to a 3-2 Carabao Cup defeat to Brighton

Antonio Conte is on a shortlist of potential managers to replace Michael Carrick at Manchester United, according to reports in Italy. While it's still early in the campaign, Carrick's side have managed just one win from their opening four Premier League games and crashed out of the Carabao Cup to Brighton on Wednesday night.

United again threw away a 2-0 advantage at Old Trafford, with early goals from Shea Lacey and Mason Mount overturned by an excellent Brighton side. The Stretford End booed the players at full‑time and chanted 'what the f\\\ hell was that?', with the defeat marking United's third loss in six games across all competitions.

> "We all know it's there," Carrick said after the game. "We know it's there whether it's good or whether it's not good. How you deal with that is the important thing.

> "Being here toughens you up over a period of time, and it depends how you deal with it. You've got to deal with it in a way where you can cope with it and you can bring out the best in yourself, and whatever, however you do that, with your motivation and the confidence deep within yourself to, as a whole group I'm talking about here, that we know we can win football matches and that's what we are here for is to win.

> "It feels pretty quick, as I just said about the couple of little things that go one way and we've gone out of the cup tonight, and the feeling around the place feels bigger than that."

The defeat at Old Trafford, after leading 2-0, marked the first time United have thrown away such a lead in 50 years. While it may be too early to say the 45‑year‑old is facing a must‑win game at Fulham this weekend, reports in Italy have already positioned Conte as a potential successor to Carrick.

Corriere della Sera (via Sport Witness) even claims the club 'aren’t entirely sure about Carrick,' suggesting United have 'begun to evaluate his future' and that 'another managerial change could be considered soon.' Conte is said to be at the top of that shortlist.

The Italian has been out of work since the end of last season and is believed to be waiting for the right project to restart his career, with growing noise around a possible return to Juventus. Pressure is mounting on Luciano Spalletti, with Juve sitting eighth in Serie A after winning just two of their opening four games.

Meanwhile, Carrick has insisted he feels calm about his position, saying: "I don't feel under pressure. Either way, that doesn't bother me one bit.

> "It generally doesn't bother me one bit. I understand what goes on outside and how the world works, but it doesn't bother me."

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