Mauricio Pochettino poised to agree two-and-a-half-year Manchester United contract

Detailed summary

Manchester United are set to agree a two-and-a-half-year contract with Mauricio Pochettino to succeed Michael Carrick as head coach. An announcement could come as early as Friday…

Mauricio Pochettino has been confirmed as Manchester United’s new head coach following Michael Carrick’s sacking on Thursday.

Pochettino will guide the US through a pair of Concacaf Nations League matches against Haiti on Saturday and Tuesday before travelling to Manchester. His first game in charged of United will be away to Liverpool on November 22nd.

The former Chelsea, Tottenham and Southampton manager has signed a two-and-a-half-year deal to replace Carrick, who was sacked after leading United to their worst start to a season in four decades. United have won one of their past 11 games and are in the relegation zone of the Premier League.

Pochettino signed a new four-year contract with US Soccer in August, an expansive deal that offered the Argentinian greater control over youth development and the overall direction of the men’s programme. To secure his services, United have paid the US federation about $10 million (€9 million), with an additional fee paid to secure the services of Pochettino’s long-time assistants.

United’s players who are not away on international duty were told on Thursday they did not need to return to training until next week. With the second of the US’s two games against Haiti finishing in the early hours of Wednesday, Pochettino’s first day with United is expected to be Thursday.

“The opportunity to represent the USA crest was one of the greatest honours of my career,” Pochettino said in a statement issued on Friday. “We are so grateful to the players for their commitment, to the fans for their belief, and to the federation for always supporting our staff and creating the opportunities to impact the culture of soccer in this great country.

“There is tremendous talent in the US player pool from the youth teams through to the senior team, and it’s one of the reasons we have so much belief for the future of US Soccer. You will always have a special place in our hearts, and we will be supporting the teams whenever they step on the field.”

Pochettino…

Opening of the article, excerpted from The Irish Times. To read the rest, open the article on the publisher's site.