Man Utd Set for Unusual Move Not Seen in 30 Years After Michael Carrick Upturn

Manchester United are reportedly set to do something they haven’t for almost three decades following the 2025/26 Premier League campaign.

The mood around Old Trafford, it’s fair to say, has been uplifted by Micahel Carrick’s arrival as head coach following the sacking of Ruben Amorim in early January.

The Newcastle-born head coach has since managed United to a 2-0 Manchester derby victory over Manchester City and a last-gasp 3-2 away win against Arsenal at the Emirates, leaving United fourth in the league.

Performances have improved, as well as results, which caused former Red Devils captain Gary Neville to claim he had been “blown away” by the transformation under Carrick, when speaking on The Gary Neville Podcast after the match in north London on Sunday (January 25).

The 50-year-old claimed that several things have changed under Carrick, including “the intensity, the compactness, the aggression of the defending, their willingness to get behind the ball together and be difficult to beat and dig in when you're in difficult moments of the game”.

Manchester United head coach Michael Carrick (Credit:Getty)

Next up for United is a home match against Fulham on February 1 before they welcome Spurs to Old Trafford on February 7.

And if the positive results continue, there will likely be a clamour for Carrick to stay on as head coach, as his current deal is until the end of the season.

If he does remain as head coach, he could lead United on a historic pre-season tour come the summer of 2026.

As reported by The Sun, United are trying to organise friendlies in Helsinki, Finland, and Gothenburg, Sweden, having not toured Scandinavia for nearly 30 years.

United have not played in the Finnish capital since facing HJK Helsinki in the 1965 European Cup.

The Red Devils last played in Gothenburg in 2016 when they faced Turkish side Galatasaray in a friendly.

Man Utd played Leeds Utd in Stockholm in July of 2025 (Credit:Getty)

United have also played in Norway three times and Sweden once over the past four pre-season campaigns, but have not played multiple games in Scandinavia since 2012, when they faced Valerenga and Barcelona in the region.

The last official tour of Scandinavia came back in 1998 when Sir Alex Ferguson was United boss.

United have embarked on tours of the US in the past three seasons, but this is not possible due to the 2026 World Cup taking place across Mexico, the US, and Canada until July 19.