Michael Carrick says Manchester United cannot make a “knee-jerk” decision on their long-term future after winning their first three games as manager.
The Red Devils approached their former midfielder, captain and coach about a deal until the end of the campaign after Ruben Amorim’s scattered 14-month reign came to a bitter end in early January.
Carrick has rejuvenated United since taking over as manager three weeks ago, with wins against Manchester City, Arsenal and Fulham lifting the team to fourth in the Premier League.
Next up is an Old Trafford clash with his former club Tottenham on Saturday. The 44-year-old says he wouldn’t get carried away if they won again – and he doesn’t believe the club would either.
“Nothing has changed, no, to be honest,” said Carrick – nominated for January’s Premier League Manager of the Month award.
“It’s not going to change what I do or how I feel about it. I think I’m fully aware of the role I play here and the responsibility I have.
“We want to be successful. I want the club to be successful after the end of the season. If it’s me, if it’s someone else at this point, I can’t control it and we’ll see what happens.
“But it’s definitely about trying to improve the team and keep making Manchester United stronger and improving all the time. But nothing has changed. The results over a short period of time don’t change that.
“If they’ve changed it, there’s something wrong. It can’t be knee-jerk either way, whether it’s really good or there’s a few issues we need to fix. It’s actually steady progress.
“You know football can twist and turn just as quickly, so we’ve got to kind of keep it level, really, and stay focused on what we’ve got to do.”
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Carrick was chosen to take charge for the rest of the season after United also spoke to former boss Ole Gunnar Solskjær.
The Red Devils decided to bring in a coach with an understanding of the club to ease the transition into a short-term role, giving director of football Jason Wilcox time to go through a thorough recruitment process.
Told by Carrick that he will certainly be happy to be part of that conversation if his success continues, the boss said: “I love what I’m doing. I’m here, you know.
“I feel at home here, but I fully understand the situation, so I don’t get too carried away.”
Carrick’s only focus right now is United’s upcoming games, with Saturday’s game against Tottenham followed by facing another of his former clubs on Tuesday – West Ham, away.
More on what Carrick needs to do to stay as Man Utd boss
Sky Sports’ Paul Merson on Premier League Friday:
“What he needs – and it probably wouldn’t help him – is to win five or six on the trot, then lose three or four on the trot, and then how do you react?
“People will say he should never be Man Utd manager. But when you lose those three or four games and the scrutiny comes at you at the biggest club in the world, how do you cope?
“We saw it with Ole Gunnar Solskjær, he came in, sat at the wheel – but then you see pictures of him at Watford away when they were destroyed and he looked lost.
“Carrick will probably lose three or four on the trot, then win five on the trot and everyone will go: that’s a good manager. He’s turned it around when the pressure was on. That’s the only way you’ll ever know how good he is.”