Football365 reported on 26 October that Martin Keown said Manchester United should hire Antonio Conte if the club decide to sack Michael Carrick after a 3-0 Premier League home defeat to Bournemouth at Old Trafford on Sunday.
Keown backs Conte
Keown believes Manchester United should turn to Conte if they make a managerial change. Keown said on talkSPORT: "I don’t really know whether they did with him. Conte would not be a bad choice for me because I think he wants to create change."
Football365 report on Carrington meeting
Football365 reported that Manchester United chief executive Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox were at Carrington on Monday 26 October morning to make a final decision on Michael Carrick's future as manager.
Conte's position
The report says Conte is without a managerial role after parting ways with Napoli at the end of last season. The report says Conte is reportedly ready to take charge of Manchester United immediately and replace Carrick as manager.
The report also says Conte released a statement. In that statement, Conte said: "My name has been linked with numerous clubs, but there are currently no negotiations at an advanced stage. Following a wonderful and successful spell in charge of Napoli, I will take the time I need to consider how and when to return to management. It will be a carefully considered decision, one I will make when I believe the conditions are right."
Meulensteen opposes appointment
[one origin: Metro] Former Manchester United coach Rene Meulensteen said he would not support appointing Conte. Metro quotes Meulensteen as saying when asked about Conte to Man Utd: "I’ve seen that name being said and I would not be a supporter of that appointment at all. I think that would maybe get a very short uplift, but it would come crashing down really, really quickly knowing the way that Conte goes about his job. I wouldn’t be in favour of that. If you asked me any other names, I couldn’t tell you, because the problem is not the next manager. Yes, he needs to be a strong personality, a strong character with great, strong views about the way he wants to do things. But every other manager that has been there before has, reading between the lines, said the same thing. The problem is that the ownership has Manchester United in a headlock. That’s the problem and they can’t get out it."