Ole Gunnar Solskjaer sacked by Manchester United; Zinedine Zidane favourite
Manchester United have sacked head coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer following Saturday's 4-1 defeat to Watford.
The Old Trafford club held an emergency board meeting in the hours following the full-time whistle where the decision was made.
Solskjaer - who admitted that he was "embarrassed by losing the way we do" after the game at Vicarage Road - leaves his position after nearly three years in charge.
United are currently seventh in the Premier League table after 12 games - 12 points behind Chelsea at the top.
In a statement, the club said: "Ole will always be a legend at Manchester United and it is with regret that we have reached this difficult decision.
"While the past few weeks have been disappointing, they should not obscure all the work he has done over the past three years to rebuild the foundations for long-term success.
"Ole leaves with our sincerest thanks for his tireless efforts as Manager and our very best wishes for the future.
"His place in the club’s history will always be secure, not just for his story as a player, but as a great man and a Manager who gave us many great moments.
"He will forever be welcome back at Old Trafford as part of the Manchester United family."
They added that Michael Carrick will take charge of the forthcoming games, while the club looks to appoint an “interim manager” for the rest of the season.
Zidane and Rodgers lead the market
- FOR THE LATEST ODDS UPDATES ON THE NEXT MANCHESTER UNITED MANAGER, CLICK HERE
Former Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane has taken top spot in the market with reports linking him with the vacancy.
The former midfielder won the Champions League three times and La Liga twice across two spells at Real.
He replaced Leicester's Brendan Rodgers as favourite. The 48-year-old guided the Foxes to FA Cup glory at the end of the 2020/21 season but they have failed to live up to previous heights across their opening 12 games of the new campaign.
Leicester are 12th with four wins and 15 points on their tally - they were 3rd with 24 points at this stage last season.
Next Manchester United manager (odds via Sky Bet)
- Zinedine Zidane - 9/4
- Michael Carrick - 5/2
- Brendan Rodgers - 6/1
- Erik ten Hag - 6/1
- Ralf Rangnick - 7/1
- Laurent Blanc - 20/1
- Darren Fletcher - 22/1
Odds correct at 1200 GMT on 21/11/21