It’s been one of the most hectic and disruptive seasons in Leicester City’s history, but with seven games left to play the Foxes’ fate is far from secure. Dean Smith’s side were ruthlessly dealt with by a relentless Manchester City on Saturday, yet LCFC did come out with their heads held high after some good attacking work in the final 20 minutes of the game.
With the season entering a climactic finale, Leicester City’s board will be looking at the club’s long-term future. Smith has only been appointed until June and the verdict on his job will be largely down to Premier League survival.
Now, the board will be assessing the alternative options if Smith departs in the summer; they won’t want to be caught out again without a plan. One of the rumoured names is Middlesbrough’s Michael Carrick, according to LeicestershireLive, Carrick is ‘of interest to City’ as they draw up their shortlist for the next manager.
Carrick has quickly become one of the most exciting managers in England with his Boro side storming their way through the Championship, playing beautiful attacking football as they go along. Yet the club should be cautious if they think Carrick is Leicester’s future. Here are Foxes of Leicester’s three reasons why he isn’t the right man for the job.
A massive gamble
On paper, Carrick has had a steady rise in his managerial career. After the Manchester United legend retired from playing football in 2018, he quickly became assistant manager of the Red Devils – first to Jose Mourinho and then to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
When Solskjaer was sacked in 2021, Carrick stepped up and became caretaker manager for three games until a successor was found. He did well, winning his first game against Villarreal in the Champions League before beating Arsenal 3-2 and drawing 1-1 away to Chelsea. Shortly after, it was confirmed that Ralf Rangnick would take temporary charge of the club and Carrick decided to leave his role and pursue new opportunities.
In October 2022, following a dreadful start to the campaign in which they were 21st in the Championship after 16 games, Middlesbrough hired Carrick to help rescue their season and avoid the drop to League One. The 41-year-old has transformed Boro into one of the most exciting teams in the division, taking them from a point above the relegation zone to a comfortable fourth place as they push for promotion.
In Middlesbrough’s first 16 games of the season, they picked up only 17 points. In Carrick’s first 16 games, they took 37 points. The job he is doing cannot be downplayed but, with that being said, Carrick is still very young in his managerial career. He is less than a year into his Boro project and we are yet to see how he deals with the struggles that will come his way.
Leicester City choosing him as their man is a major gamble considering how little experience he has in the managerial game. It is very reminiscent of Frank Lampard’s jump from Derby to Chelsea. The jump in expectation, quality, and competitiveness is huge between the Championship and the Premier League and you can quickly be found out.
Lampard took the first big opportunity in the Premier League that came to him; that decision clearly was the wrong one with Lampard’s career going from a promising one, to a joke to most fans. Carrick must learn from the mistakes of others that he can’t rush his development.
The Leicester City rebuild
The task that Leicester’s next manager has to take on is far bigger than either pushing for promotion or battling another season for Premier League survival, the squad is in need of a complete overhaul.
This season, seven first-team players are out of contract including the likes of Youri Tielemans and Caglar Soyuncu who look likely to leave, alongside Daniel Amartey and Papy Mendy who could still be given an extension. From next season, 8 players enter the final year of their deal and would leave in the summer including Wilfred Ndidi, James Maddison and Jonny Evans.
Not just these free agents, but if the club were to be relegated this season, a significant exodus of their best stars would occur including the likes of Harvey Barnes and Timothy Castagne. Even if they find a way to survive, some of City’s best players may decide it’s time to move on.
The club faces a dramatic squad change over the next two years and will be desperately looking for someone with clarity and vision for the future of the team. The question over Carrick is if he is the right man for that job, or would he be suffocated by the magnitude of the task in hand.
Foxes fans have seen first-hand the consequences of bad transfer moves. Part of Brendan Rodgers’ downfall was due to the business done in the market in 2021, something the club are still looking to amend. Leicester can’t allow similar events to occur and must appoint the right man for the job, not take a major punt.
Alternatives
The strongest argument against Carrick is the amount of available coaches there are for Leicester in the summer. The first name is Graham Potter. Leicester have been long-term admirers of the former Chelsea and Brighton boss, seeing him as someone to build the next project around.
His appointment very much depends on their Premier League survival – you couldn’t see him dropping back down to the Championship unless the offer was very special. Of course, the club will look at how Dean Smith performs. Even if the club is relegated, Smith could be deemed the right man for the job if he shows enough promise over the next month or so.
Steve Cooper is a man who should be on the Foxes radar, his future at Forrest seems uncertain but Leicester would be foolish if they didn’t approach him. Fans may also push for a return of Nigel Pearson, though he may take some convincing as he seems to be enjoying life in Bristol.
Rafa Benitez is still without a club, as are both Patrick Vieira and Marcelo Bielsa, though such is the scale and pull of the Seagrave training ground, the Foxes may be able to pitch a project to Mauricio Pochettino, though this is less likely.
Unfortunately for Carrick, there are a lot more appealing managers out there with far greater experience for what is required at the King Power. He is a manager the club should monitor and follow, but now isn’t his time.