Manchester United have made a slow start to the campaign under Michael Carrick, with the club securing only one win in the Premier League after nine matches.

This has raised real questions about the future of Carrick at Old Trafford and the trajectory the club is currently heading.

It is clear for all to see that the team is struggling to perform on the football pitch; however, many fans and pundits have not solely put the blame on the manager. Instead, they have started to point fingers at the mentality and quality of the players, along with those within the hierarchy of the club.

Despite a victory over Roma in the Champions League at Old Trafford, there appears to be a feeling of inevitability that Carrick will be replaced as manager, as the board hopes this can have the desired impact of fixing the crisis on the pitch.

Now, former Premier League manager Paul Lambert has spoken about the man who could solve the issues on the pitch and could even be a long-term solution if the problems off it were also fixed.

Paul Lambert is in ‘no doubt’ Unai Emery could be a solution for Manchester United

Unai Emery has proven to be one of the best managers in the Premier League for the work that he has done at Aston Villa. Yet, many would argue he is one of the best managers in world football at present due to his track record in European competition, with clubs that may not be considered elite.

Since replacing Steven Gerrard in November 2022, the Aston Villa manager has transformed the club from a middling Premier League side into one that has consistently competed to qualify for European competition.

He has brought stability and consistency to Villa, despite their peculiar situation in which he has had to see some of his best players depart the club, yet he has always managed to find a solution.

This is exactly what many pundits, including Lambert, believe Man United needs in a manager: someone who can deliver results on the pitch while addressing the club’s problems behind the scenes.

Lambert told Sports Mole exclusively via football betting site BetVictor, he said: “I think he's a brilliant football manager. I think he's been a revelation at Aston Villa for what he's done.

“It needed somebody like him. The ownership. If you look at Aston Villa's ownership now, I think that's been incredible.

“Would he cope with Manchester United if they did come in? Absolutely, he would. Yeah, I've got absolutely no doubt he would. Because he's a big manager. He's been at big clubs. He knows how to win.

“Are Man United fixable? I would say in the medium to long term at the minute, yeah. But short term, they are what they are, I think. I think they're going to go up and down.

“What's happened in the past, you forget it because it's not going to come back. But they're a big name in paper. And if somebody does get it right, then it's going to be a monster again.”

Paul Lambert’s tenure at Aston Villa

The former Scotland international came close to three years at Aston Villa as manager; however, he fell short by five months.

Lambert’s time in charge was not overly spectacular, as he finished 15th consecutively in his two full seasons, and he was relieved of his duties in his third campaign to be replaced by Tim Sherwood, with Villa in 18th position, fighting against relegation.

Notably, the Scot guided the club to the semi-final of the EFL Cup, where they suffered a humbling defeat to Bradford City over two legs.

The Bantams were tame in the final as they lost 5-0 to Swansea City, so Lambert and Villa may have felt it was a missed opportunity to win their first piece of silverware since 1996.

However, their wait for a trophy was brought to a close by Emery last season when he guided them to the Europa League title.