MICHAEL CARRICK insists he is in ‘no rush’ to complete his new backroom team at Middlesbrough, and expects Jonathan Woodgate to play a major role in shaping the club’s fortunes over the next few seasons.
Woodgate was confirmed as Boro’s new first-team coach when Carrick was appointed as head coach on Monday, but the statement announcing the changes also revealed there was a major position on the backroom staff that was yet to be filled.
Carrick will begin life as Boro’s new boss at Preston on Saturday without an assistant working alongside him, with discussions over the identity of a number two having held up confirmation of his new position.
Rene Meulensteen, who worked with Carrick on Manchester United’s backroom staff, and Adam Sadler, who is currently a first-team coach at Leicester City, are understood to have been considered, but as things stand, a move for a new number two is not believed to be imminent.
As a rookie head coach, Carrick would potentially benefit from having a more experienced figure working alongside him, but the 41-year-old insists he is not concerned by the current vacancy within his backroom set-up.
“I think we’re just looking to improve all the time, whether that’s playing staff, coaching staff or an assistant for me,” said the new Boro boss. “You’ve got to look forward and evolve, and you’ve got to keep improving.
“I’m patient with that. I’m not chasing it. It’s got to be right. I’m the type where I wouldn’t just do something for the sake of it or fill certain things just because you think you should do. It’s got to be right.
“We feel we’ve made the right decisions so far in terms of the staff and the balance, and the next one obviously needs to be right too, like it is when we’re signing players. It has to be right, and the dynamics and the balance have to fit. We’ll take that decision in due course.”
For now, Carrick is happy enough to have Woodgate working alongside him, with the pair having overseen their first training session together on Monday morning.
Woodgate’s own spell as Boro boss might have ended in disappointment when he was dismissed to make way for Neil Warnock in the summer of 2020, but with the Teessider having gone a long way towards rehabilitating his reputation during a subsequent spell at Bournemouth, Carrick is confident he will be an invaluable source of knowledge and support.
“Woody is vital to helping me and working together,” said Carrick. “It’s not about me, it’s about us as a group and a club. Woody is vital. I’ve known him for quite some time. It’s not that we’ve been super-close over that time, but I’ve known him and I’ve been speaking to him recently when this was the plan.
“We clicked big time, we get on so well, but more than that, it’s not about being mates, it’s about seeing the game in a certain way. Woody knows the club inside out, and everyone is delighted to have him back. I’m absolutely delighted to have him on my staff, and I see us working together and having a really strong relationship.”
Carrick is determined to build strong personal links with all those around him, citing the ‘family feeling’ at Old Trafford as one of the key reasons behind Manchester United’s success.
“Everyone who has a role here and works here is here for a reason, and are valued for what they do and what they bring,” he said. “I certainly see that.
“It’s not just about the first team or our best first-team players, it’s about an awful lot more than that. It’s about people and relationships, and coming into work with a real purpose. I really feel strongly about that, and as a club, we do. We’ve spoken about how highly we value that.”
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