With Pochettino set to take over, the Argentine could therefore make his return to Premier League management against Liverpool, having previously managed Spurs, Chelsea and Southampton.
Carrick departs less than six months after signing a two-year contract having overseen the club's worst-ever start to a Premier League season with United in the relegation zone after picking up one win in 10 matches.
Much debate has been made over whether he should be sacked, but the Red Devile have pulled the trigger on Thursday morning as they seek change.
Since Sir Alex Ferguson departed in 2013, United have powered through eight different head coaches, with limited success.
How each manager has performed
Alex Ferguson: 810 games, 528W 168D 114L, goals 1627-703, 65% wins, 1752 pts, 2.16 per game
David Moyes: 34 games, 17W 6D 11L, goals 56-40, 50% wins, 57 pts, 1.68 per game
Louis van Gaal: 76 games, 39W 19D 18L, goals 111-72, 51% wins, 136 pts, 1.79 per game
Jose Mourinho: 93 games, 50W 26D 17L, goals 151-86, 54% wins, 176 pts, 1.89 per game
Ole Gunnar Solskjær: 109 games, 56W 29D 24L, goals 195-126, 51% wins, 197 pts, 1.81 per game
Ralf Rangnick: 24 games, 10W 7D 7L, goals 33-33, 42% wins, 37 pts, 1.54 per game
Erik ten Hag: 85 games, 44W 14D 27L, goals 123-112, 52% wins, 146 pts, 1.72 per game
Ruben Amorim: 47 games, 15W 13D 19L, goals 66-72, 32% wins, 58 pts, 1.23 per game
Michael Carrick (since January 2026): 27 games, 13W 8D 6L, goals 47-37, 48% wins, 47 pts, 1.74 per game
Interestingly, Amorim has the lowest win rate (32%) and points per game (1.23) of any manager on the list. He also conceded the most, at 1.53 per game, ahead of Rangnick and Carrick (both about 1.37).
Carrick had the lowest points per game, but had a higher amount of points than Rangnick.
Whether United will find more success with Pochettino is yet to be seen, but as they face Liverpool next weekend, three points are imperative as the side seek to jump out of the relegation zone.