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Michael Carrick received the ultimate endorsement for his managerial abilities this week when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer insisted the former midfielder will take charge of Manchester United in future. Carrick has been in charge of Middlesbrough since October, and has led the club up the table and into a coveted play off spot, with just three matches standing in their way of reaching the Premier League. The former Manchester United midfielder has taken charge previously at Old Trafford, albeit briefly, when he succeeded Solskjaer on a temporary basis, for just three matches. He oversaw victories over Arsenal and Villarreal before stepping down following the appointment of Ralf Rangnick in December 2021. Solskjaer heaped high praise on Carrick, noting his calm demeanour, reflective nature and meticulous over details as crucial for his successes as manager and believe he will take the reigns at Old Trafford one day, if the 41 year old desires. Carrick took charge of Middlesbrough in October 2022 and has guided the club to fourth place in the Championship and a position in the play-offs, arguably exceeding similar exploits of those he once called England teammates in Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard. His exploits with the Championship club have largely gone under the radar, for someone who spent 12 years at Manchester United and made 34 England appearances. Chris Wilder was unceremoniously sacked on 3 October after the club suffered five defeats in the first 11 games of the Championship campaign, with the prospects of promotion far from anyone’s hopes. Few then could have predicted Middlesbrough’s almost meteoric rise up the table, from just one point above the relegation zone to within touching distance of the riches of the Premier League. It was Carrick’s first permanent managerial position, but he had learned his trade as part of Jose Mourinho and Solskjaer’s coaching staff and has impressed in the north east. His time on the Tees saw Boro secure 15 wins from his first 20 matches, but they have trailed off slightly recently, with just two wins from their last seven games, ahead of a play-off meeting with Coventry, who have spent just 17 days in the promotion places this campaign. Should Carrick lead Boro into the Premier League he will have exceeded all expectations when he took over the role. While Carrick never received the same focus as the Liverpool and Chelsea midfielders as a player, he has also gone under the radar when it comes to management, while Lampard and Gerrard’s managerial campaigns have received significantly more media attention. Gerrard had some success at Rangers, and led the club to their first top-flight title in over 10 years, before leaving in November 2021 to take charge of Aston Villa, where he lasted less than a year. Since his sacking and the appointment of Unai Emery, Villa are now on the cusp of Europe. Lampard is currently employed on his second spell at Chelsea following a disastrous time at Everton and before that, Chelsea. He took charge of his former club from July 2019 to January 2021 but was sacked, and recently returned only in a temporary position to see the club through to the end of the campaign. However, neither Gerrard, Lampard nor Carrick have yet managed successfully in the top flight, although the former United midfielder will be looking to change that, with the first leg of the play-offs at Coventry on 14 May. Read More When are the play-offs? Coventry City aiming to come full circle after journey to hell and back A tiny ground and a squad costing less than a Man City sub. How are Luton within reach of the Premier League? From Netflix embarrassment to the Premier League? Sunderland seek to leave chaos behind A closer look at this season’s play-off contenders as promotion battle resumes Everton have their edge back at the right time in relegation battle – Sean Dyche Jurgen Klopp happy Liverpool ‘could show up a little bit’ before end of season

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has had more extensive contact with Raine Group over the past two weeks than Qatar, creating a positivity within the INEOS bid that they can be the next owners of Manchester United, although it has not yet been communicated who the preferred bidder is. That does leave the way open for a huge Qatar offer that many have long been waiting for, but it would have to be a significant increase on their third-round bid of under £5bn. They would also have to be quick, as it is now expected that an announcement on preferred bidder could come next week. While the nature of this process ultimately comes down to the numbers, there was irritation on the selling side at some of the briefing around the third Sheikh Jassim-led bid, given it was considerably lower than had been anticipated. The Independent has also been told that the Glazers have been giving consideration to the fact any Qatar offer could take six to nine months longer, due to the likelihood that the assessment by the Owners and Directors test would be far longer. The bid comes as the Premier League have sought to tighten regulations on state-linked owners, amid increasing pressure over the subject. The Glazers are also conscious of the fact that, if that happens, and the Qatar deal were to falter, Ratcliffe would be unlikely to come in on a point of principle. As the INEOS group have long pointed out, their offer can lead to a cleaner process. Ratcliffe's group are “optimistic” that, if the takeover process continues smoothly, they would at least have an agreement to buy the club by the summer transfer window. That could leave Erik ten Hag frustrated as regards transfers for next season, given the club would be restricted in what it could do, but with the offset that the future would be much clearer thereafter. Either way, the Glazers' bankers are currently willing to discuss final details with Ratcliffe. The only development that could currently change that is if Qatar come back in with a huge offer, and there is insistence from within the Gulf state they are still in the race. At the same time, discussions with Raine have been minimal, with one source even stating that it was as close as you can get to being “ghosted” in such processes. The prospective takeover of United has been discussed at the top levels of the state, but a number of political issues have complicated the planned purchase, not least the willingness to not be seen to just pay whatever it takes. From the start, Qatar have been insistent they will only buy for the right price. It remains to be seen whether that valuation changes as the possibility of failure looms. Read More What would a Sir Jim Ratcliffe takeover mean for Manchester United Erik ten Hag unsure what funds will be available to strengthen Man Utd’s squad Man Utd fans stage protest against Glazers before and during Aston Villa match

Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson have dominated opposing teams by burying 3-pointers when left wide open or getting clean looks

Saturday's transfer round-up includes news on the future of Declan Rice, the fight for Nicolo Barella, Emi Martinez's many suitors and more.

Golden State coach Steve Kerr acknowledged Friday that the 2022-23 iteration of the Warriors "is not a championship team," but he believes Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green...

The Los Angeles Lakers ran defending champions Golden State out of the NBA playoffs in dominant style on Friday, beating the Warriors 122-101 to advance...

Pepe Reina saved three penalties and his own reputation as Liverpool won a thrilling FA Cup final against West Ham on this day in 2006. Reina almost threw the cup away in normal time at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium with mistakes which gifted the Hammers two goals. But he was the hero of the shoot-out, saving from Bobby Zamora, Paul Konchesky and Anton Ferdinand to break the gallant Hammers’ hearts. Liverpool’s seventh FA Cup win mirrored the result which saw them crowned champions of Europe in Istanbul 12 months earlier, and – just like against AC Milan – Reina only had his shot at glory thanks to another superhuman effort from Steven Gerrard. Liverpool skipper Gerrard equalised twice – the second a 30-yard thunderbolt in injury-time – and then scored his penalty despite suffering cramp in the closing minutes of the game. The 125th FA Cup final was the best in years, and certainly the most exciting since Manchester United’s 3-3 draw with Crystal Palace in 1990. For a long time, the magic of the cup looked like giving West Ham another FA Cup triumph in the year former managers Ron Greenwood and John Lyall died. They were two goals ahead inside half an hour and were leading as the stadium announcer called for four minutes to be added on at the end of normal time. Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez praised Liverpool heroes Gerrard and Reina, but insisted his FA Cup triumph was a team effort. “You must give the credit to all my players. A lot of them had cramps after 62 games this season, but they kept going to the end,” he said. Maybe we like to do it the difficult way, but it's not good for the heart Rafael Benitez “We know about the quality of Steve. He will get lots of credit, but I prefer to talk about my team and our supporters, who were like an extra player. “Maybe we like to do it the difficult way, but it’s not good for the heart. It would be better if we could start by winning and then stay calm. “It was a fantastic final with two teams fighting really hard. The character of the team can be a key factor for the future because we can be sure we can win these kinds of games.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Players really want to come – Erik ten Hag optimistic for transfer window Dean Smith cancels Leicester day off to sort ‘lingering’ issues at troubled club Julen Lopetegui only wants committed players at Wolves

The Golden State Warriors championship defense came up short. Steph Curry and company will be back to try again next year but some big changes could be coming.Repeating as NBA champions is one of the hardest challenges in sports. But the Warriors had done it before and they were supposed to have...

The Los Angeles Lakers eliminated the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors with a 122-101 victory in Game 6 of their second-round series

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts had quite the year, and he added to it by earning his Master's degree from Oklahoma University.No one has had a better year than Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts. He had a record-breaking performance in Super Bowl 57. He nearly helped t...

Warriors fans had enough of Jordan Poole after a miserable first half performance in Game 6 with elimination looming against the Lakers.Every fan hopes to see players bring their best stuff in an elimination game. Warriors fans may have wished for that, but they definitely didn't get it fro...

Stephen A. Smith went delusional by predicting that the New York Knicks would make the NBA Finals. They didn’t even make the conference finals.So much for the begging at the video board, huh, Stephen A. Smith? So much for the New York Knicks going to the finals, huh?NOT!! The pep talk ...