Mauricio Pochettino has been confirmed as Manchester United‘s new head coach.
The 54-year-old has left his role as United States men’s national team head coach and signed a two-and-a-half year contract at Old Trafford after finalising an agreement on Thursday. He’s set to take charge for the first time when United travel to Anfield to face Liverpool on Nov. 22.
Pochettino takes over from Michael Carrick, who was sacked on Thursday just 15 games into the two-year contract he signed in May.
United CEO Omar Berrada informed U.S. Soccer on Wednesday that they were willing to trigger a $10 million (£7.5m) release clause in Pochettino’s contract.
Sources have told ESPN that it was Pochettino’s representatives who first alerted United to the existence of the clause.
Pochettino was interviewed by Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox in May 2024 shortly after he left Chelsea. United ultimately decided to stick with Erik ten Hag and Pochettino accepted the USMNT job in September 2024.
Pochettino emerged as the top choice to replace Carrick because of his vast Premier League experience and his history of working at big clubs.
He’s had spells at Southampton, Tottenham and Chelsea as well as Paris Saint-Germain, where he was in charge of a dressing room which included Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé and Neymar.
United believe they’ve got a tactically astute coach who plays a style of football that the fans will appreciate, sources told ESPN. Club bosses also think Pochettino has the personality to handle the intense scrutiny at Old Trafford.
During the early part of the season, concerns were raised internally that Carrick was struggling to cope when form of the team began to dip. Some of the technical staff held the opinion that Carrick did not focus enough on the small details in a bid to get United out of trouble, including more work on set-pieces.
Sources have told ESPN that United believe Pochettino is the right leader for the dressing room, but also with the right amount of coaching experience to significantly improve the team he is inheriting.
United are 18th in the table with just one league win all season.
Pochettino will take charge of the USMNT’s two games against Haiti, on Nov. 14 and Nov. 17, during the international break before travelling to Manchester. United expect him at Carrington on Wednesday ahead of the trip to Anfield four days later.
Most of United’s international players are also due back at Carrington on Wednesday ahead of facing Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday.
Pochettino said about his time with the USMNT: “The opportunity to represent the USA crest was one of the greatest honors of my career. 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.
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“We want to thank Cindy Parlow Cone, JT Batson and Dan Helfrich for their partnership and incredible working relationships throughout our time here. There is tremendous talent in the U.S. 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 U.S. Soccer. You will always have a special place in our hearts, and we will be supporting the teams whenever they step on the field.”
U.S. Soccer CEO and Secretary General JT Batson said: “Mauricio has left a lasting mark on U.S. Soccer through his leadership, professionalism and commitment to our players and culture. What we are most proud of goes beyond the wins. He and his staff raised standards, strengthened our culture and created clearer connections from the Youth National Teams to the senior team. Those changes are now embedded in how we operate, and we will keep building on them as we pursue sustained success on the world stage.”
U.S. Soccer President Cindy Parlow Cone said: “I want to thank Mauricio and his staff for all their contributions over the past two years to move our Men’s National Team forward, and wish him all the best at Manchester United. As we look ahead, we have an exciting group of players and our focus at the completion of this FIFA window is on finding the right coaching staff to help us build on the progress we’ve built and lead this team to even more success on the world stage.”
Batson added about the search for a new USMNT coach: “With the great combination of veterans, fantastic young talent and a world-class facility, we are confident in the future of this program. We are looking for a leader with the talent, experience and belief to match our ambition, build on the culture and pathway now in place and help the USMNT take the next step.”
