Angus is an experienced football journalist at Football FanCast, specialising in Premier League reporting, opinion writing and in-depth football analysis. Since graduating from Southampton Solent University in 2022, he has developed extensive experience covering the English game, producing thousands of articles across a wide range of clubs and competitions.  

Before joining Football FanCast, Angus led VAVEL's Brighton & Hove Albion department, gaining valuable experience in club-specific reporting and editorial leadership. He subsequently joined Football FanCast through Snack Media's academy, now part of Valnet, and has progressed into the publication's Opinions and Features team.
 

As one of Football FanCast's longest-serving writers, Angus has covered numerous major developments across the Premier League, combining breaking news experience with detailed features and considered opinions. His work draws on years of reporting to provide context behind performances, transfer activity and the wider issues shaping English football.

It's pouring down at Manchester United.

These are dark days for the Red Devils, but then, in a way, it must feel like Groundhog Day. The cyclical nature of Man United's decline continues, with a limp defeat against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge keeping Michael Carrick's side near the basement of the Premier League, only a point above the relegation zone.

Carrick worked wonders when replacing Ruben Amorim last season, catapulting United back into the ascendancy. United somehow finished third in the Premier League after labouring through the first half of the season.

Here in west London, the manager's malaise deepened. United have been dealt another defeat.

How Man United played against Chelsea

Manchester United actually played pretty well throughout the first half in the capital. As encouraging as their general play was, though, United flattered to deceive in front of goal, missing any number of chances to break the deadlock.

But capitulation is becoming a buzzword for the Old Trafford side, whose lapses in concentration and discipline left Carrick looking forlorn. Lisandro Martinez's second-half red card led to Cole Palmer's penalty, doubling Chelsea's lead after Morgan Rogers opened the scoring after the interval.

Wastefulness will have frustrated the manager, who knows what it takes to win football matches for Manchester United, especially with Chelsea having been limited to just 0.28 xG (expected goals) before half-time.

Expected Goals (xG) is a metric designed to measure the probability of a shot resulting in a goal.

Alas, Chelsea ran rampant in the second half, and while it's a decision which will split opinion, INEOS may need to sack Carrick, even though it's clear that these deep-rooted problems are well, well beyond the 45-year-old.

Why Michael Carrick needs to be sacked

Carrick walked off the pitch at Stamford Bridge with a perplexed expression painted on his face. How he must seethe at the inexplicable incompetence of many of his Red Devils players.

Carrick cut a dejected figure after the final whistle, and you can understand why. Whereas last term, the players bled on the pitch to turn things around and rise from mediocrity and into the Champions League ascendancy, now, the squad is but a pale imitation of that fleeting level.

Bruno Fernandes, for example, has fallen by the wayside. A talisman for so many years at Old Trafford, it's not surprising to see this beleaguered bunch wither in the face of their skipper's decline.

Fernandes' woes are emblematic of the wider struggles at the Theatre of Dreams. It's clear that the Portuguese Magnifico's finest days are behind him with Man United, and the fact that Carrick has lost the backing of his skipper may demand a change in the dugout.

Sadly, this is United's reality.

Man Utd must hire top young coach ASAP

If Manchester United do decide to part with Carrick, there's no question that INEOS, Jason Wilcox and the rest of them, have to get it right.

Well, perhaps they need to bite the bullet and hire the out-of-work Julian Nagelsmann as quickly as possible. Nagelsmann is one of the sharpest tactical minds in the game, and it's clear that this scattered bunch of Red Devils need some more coherent tactical leadership and direction right now.

It's been reported in recent days that INEOS have held direct talks with Nagelsmann's representatives, and talkSPORT have also confirmed that while Eddie Howe remains the frontrunner for the job, Nagelsmann is ready and wants to join, with his name having been on the club's internal shortlist for some time now. In that, he has a key advantage over the former Newcastle United manager.

Described as "the best young coach in Europe" by journalist Josh Bunting, the 39-year-old has a wealth of experience with Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig and Hoffenheim before leading Germany out for the 2026 World Cup. That one didn't work out as anyone might have planned, but Nagelsmann's desire to root his philosophy into the soil of a club might see him slot better into a project such as United's.

Nagelsmann would be ready to join Manchester United immediately. If INEOS fail to make the appointment, it's clear that someone else will make their move.

Can United afford to let that happen? Something needs to change - and quickly.