Man Utd share five reasons why they chose Mauricio Pochettino in their official announcement.
Manchester United has officially named Mauricio Pochettino as their new head coach, and their statement highlights five main reasons for bringing him on board.
Pochettino will start leading the team on November 18, once he finishes his duties with the United States men’s national team (USMNT). He will take over from Michael Carrick, who was let go on Thursday. Pochettino has signed a two-and-a-half year contract. His first match as manager will be a Premier League game away at Liverpool on November 22.
In their announcement, United said they’ve reached an agreement for Mauricio and his coaching team—likely including his longtime assistant Jesus Perez—to leave their USMNT roles after the upcoming CONCACAF Nations League quarter-final games against Haiti.
The club’s statement explains why they chose Pochettino: he’s known for his high-energy, attacking football, building strong, close-knit teams, and developing players. He’s proven himself at the top level of football in different leagues.
Pochettino is set to do a press conference on Friday as USMNT coach to talk about the Haiti games. While he’ll probably get questions about joining United, he won’t have his first official club event until he travels to Manchester before the Liverpool match.
The 54-year-old will be managing in the Premier League for the fourth time, after stints with Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur, and Chelsea.
According to talkSPORT, minority co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe supports Pochettino’s appointment, but the Glazer family led the decision. The director of football, Jason Wilcox, reportedly preferred Eddie Howe. Talks with the club started as early as October.
While coaching the USMNT, Pochettino helped them reach the last 16 of the 2026 World Cup, where they lost 4-1 to Belgium. He originally signed with the USMNT until the World Cup ended, but in August his contract was extended for another four years. Because of this, United had to pay about $10 million (£7.4 million) to release him; they could have avoided this fee if they hired him over the summer.
Pochettino now faces a tough challenge with United, who are currently 18th in the Premier League, having earned just eight points and won only once in their first 10 games of the 2026/27 season.