Paul Scholes Urges Manchester United to Target Brighton’s Fabian Hürzeler Amid Carrick Crisis

Manchester United great Paul Scholes has publicly backed a move for Brighton & Hove Albion manager Fabian Hürzeler as pressure mounts on interim boss Michael Carrick following the club’s worst start to a Premier League season in decades.

Speaking on The Good, The Bad and The Football podcast, Scholes argued the 33-year-old German has proven himself in England’s top flight — a credential he believes outweighs Carrick’s brief spell at Middlesbrough and the availability of high-profile unemployed coaches.

“He’s done great. He looks the real deal,” Scholes said of Hürzeler, who became the Premier League’s youngest permanent manager when appointed by Brighton in June. “But again, Man United is different. The scrutiny is on you every single week. If Brighton didn’t win a game for the next 10 games, nobody would really be that bothered.”

The endorsement comes as United sit 13th in the table with six points from six matches — a return that has already triggered elimination from the League Cup at the first hurdle and a Champions League defeat to Atlético Madrid. Carrick, who steadied the ship to a third-place finish after taking over in January, now faces intense speculation over his future.

Scholes, who won 11 Premier League titles under Sir Alex Ferguson, questioned whether Carrick’s motivation has waned. “There’s a bit of me when you look at Michael because I know him; Michael’s a nice lad. Is there a bit of him that’s thinking, ‘Get me out of here. Get me out of here, I’ll take a few quid.'”

The club’s hierarchy has been linked with Eddie Howe, Antonio Conte and Julian Nagelsmann — all currently out of work. Yet Scholes dismissed that pool, emphasizing Hürzeler’s active Premier League track record. “The one thing that someone like Hürzeler has got over Michael is that he’s done a body of work in the Premier League. Michael did okay in Middlesbrough with what he had. I think Middlesbrough were probably expecting more with the budget they had.”

Hürzeler, a German youth international who retired at 26 to pursue coaching, built his reputation at St. Pauli before Brighton recruited him on a four-year contract. His high-pressing, possession-based system has drawn comparisons to the early work of Jürgen Klopp and Roberto De Zerbi — the latter his predecessor at the Amex Stadium.

United’s interest would face significant obstacles. Brighton have shown no willingness to entertain approaches for a manager they view as a long-term cornerstone, and any move would likely require a compensation package exceeding £10 million. The club’s ownership, under Sir Jim Ratcliffe‘s INEOS group, has also signaled a preference for a structured, data-informed appointment process rather than reactive hires.

Historically, United have oscillated between established winners — Louis van Gaal, José Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjær — and promotion-from-within solutions. The Hürzeler profile mirrors the latter category but with a modern, continental coaching pedigree that the club has rarely pursued since Ferguson’s retirement.

For now, Carrick prepares for Saturday’s trip to Aston Villa with his position unchanged. The club’s next move may define whether the post-Ferguson era finally breaks its cycle of short-term fixes.