Man Utd: Fabrizio Romano reveals Fabian Hurzeler truths with FOUR in frame to replace Carrick

Fabrizio Romano insists it is too soon to suggest Manchester United plan to go all out to make Fabian Hurzeler their next manager should the club decide to sack Michael Carrick, while sources have told TEAMtalk what the Brighton response is to their interest in the 33-year-old German.

The Red Devils have endured a woeful start to the season with just two wins in all competitions to their name. A defeat at Leeds on Sunday would see Manchester United having lost half the games they have played this season (10) – increasing the pressure on Carrick.

Despite that, sources have been at pains to tell TEAMtalk that the 45-year-old retains the trust of both co-owners INEOS and the club’s senior players, albeit with the caveat that an improvement in results is needed.

Furthermore, the noises coming out of Old Trafford is that Carrick is not under immediate pressure of the sack.

However, the vultures are circling and we exclusively revealed on Thursday that Antonio Conte had made it clear, through intermediaries, that he was open to taking on the job if they dispensed with Carrick’s services.

Furthermore, strong reports have also since emerged that there are strong voices in the United boardroom pushing the merits of Hurzeler should a change be required.

Now, Romano has revealed what is really going on with those links

Romano said on his YouTube channel: “I wanted to answer some of your questions received over the last 48 hours, let’s say after the Atletico Madrid game, regarding Fabian Hurzeler, the manager of Brighton, strongly linked with Manchester United.

“First of all, Fabian Hurzeler, who is a very young and very talented coach, doing fantastic this season at Brighton. Don’t forget how younthis guy isuy and is doing very very well at Brighton.

“Why these links? Because there is one specific person in the Manchester United leadership group, in the Manchester United board, who really appreciates Fabian Hurzeler. So one person is bringing this name to the conversation when they talk about the managerial situation, when they talk about talented managers.

“So this is why this name is going around for Manchester United, because there is someone on the board mentioning his name. But let me say, first of all, no contacts; second, no direct talks. Third, Manchester United, as of today, are not negotiating with any other coach in general because Man United are still backing and trusting Michael Carrick.

“Fourth, and an important point, this is not the only name that is coming up in the conversations. When there are internal conversations regarding managers and more, there are more names being mentioned internally.”

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Romano also says that, as well as Hurzeler and Conte, there are two other names in the frame at Old Trafford should a change be required.

“For example, as I told you already in a video, Man Utd know very well that Antonio Conte could be open this season to take a job mid-season, which is a big difference compared to many other years when Antonio Conte didn’t want to take a job during the season.

“Just to give you an example, there are coaches available now for a top job like Man U; itd, could be Julian Nagelsmann, it could be Eddie Ho;e, for sure there would be several candidates. This was just to put some context to the Fabian Hurzeler links.”

Romano’s update comes as our transfer correspondent Graeme Bailey was also confirming United’s admiration for the 33-year-old German, who has a 45.9% win ratio since taking charge at the AMEX in June 2024.

And while Bailey has also insisted that the board remain loyal to Carrick for now, Hurzeler is a manager who has been on their radar for some time and was a coach they considered over the summer before handing the job permanently to the former.

Nonetheless, Bailey also reveals that Brighton remain relaxed about the reported interest, having nailed their coach down to a new three-year contract just this summer.

Bailey wrote: ‘Brighton are relaxed about the speculation and remain confident that their head coach will not be tempted away at this stage.

‘The Seagulls have always held Hurzeler in high regard since appointing him in 2024 to succeed Roberto De Zerbi, and their faith in the German has been reinforced by his work over the past two seasons.

Hurzeler became the youngest manager in Premier League history when he took charge at the Amex Stadium and has since guided Brighton to consecutive eighth-place finishes, establishing himself as one of the division’s most promising young coaches.

‘Hurzeler’s progress has attracted attention from several major clubs, and we understand that Brighton moved to secure his future with a new three-year contract in the summer following interest from rivals last season.

The club also backed Hurzeler in the transfer market, underlining their commitment to the project and their belief that he can continue to take Brighton forward.

‘That confidence has only grown following an excellent start to the current campaign.’

Either way, it is evidently clear that the Manchester United squad do not want their manager fired and we revealed on Thursday that Lisandro Martinez’s explosive rant following the defeat to Atletico Madrid was part-motivated by a wish to protect the manager.

In the meantime, we can also reveal that Carrick has made a decision on whether or not to play the fiery Argentine in Sunday’s vital clash at rivals Leeds United.