Michael Carrick is among the frontrunners to take over at Middlesbrough, with the Championship club keen to sound him out for talks.
The Manchester United legend has been out of work since he opted to leave Old Trafford following the appointment of Ralf Rangnick last year. Carrick had worked closely alongside Ole Gunnar Solskjaer during his stint as boss, but stayed on following his dismissal in an interim capacity.
During his time in the dugout, the 41-year-old got a tune out of the underperforming United players, leading them to two wins, and a creditable draw away at Chelsea. It was then anticipated that he would stick around when Rangnick was hired for the rest of the season, but instead decided to step away.
Carrick has been open about his ambitions to ultimately step into management and he is now one of the contenders for the vacant post at The Riverside Stadium. Chris Wilder was sacked Chris Wilder earlier this week following a miserable start to the season which had left them in the bottom three.
Boro chairman Steve Gibson is now on the lookout for his permanent replacement and is hoping to tempt Wallsend-born Carrick to make the trip from Tyneside to Teesside. The Sun claim that Carrick, along with former Watford boss Rob Edwards are in the frame, whilst Carlos Corberan - who recently left Huddersfield Town is another name of interest.
Carrick, who spent six years at United in a coaching capacity - said while he enjoyed that role, becoming a manager was now a more appealing prospect for him.
"When you're in it, it feels differently. You have that belief in yourself that you can achieve what you want to do in coaching," he told Yahoo News last month. "When you're in it, it feels differently. You have that belief in yourself that you can achieve what you want to do in coaching,
"I've enjoyed coaching, but I did enjoy the management role more. It's difficult to make a plan in football, but if something comes along, then yes, for sure I'll consider it.
"I'm definitely not chasing it, and I'm not desperate for a job right now. But at some point, it'll be good to have a go."
Boro have given themselves some breathing room to make an appointment after interim Leo Percovich masterminded a valuable win over Birmingham City in midweek. The popular coach has worked alongside a number of head coaches during his time with the club and is now urging for patience to ensure the next decision is the correct one.
“I think the club now is managing their time to analyse the situation and who is the right person to be here,” Percovich said. “Whether it’s rushed or not rushed, there is a certain time we need to analyse and take the final decision.
“We feel like we’ve relieved a bit of the pressure but we still have to focus, and our latest focus is Millwall because this is the most important thing right now. That Birmingham win is now in the past. We used a lot of fuel to push for that result, but getting a result against Millwall is our target now."
