Erik ten Hag's Brighton nightmare, Ruben Amorim's fast start - and a trophy for David Moyes: How every Man United manager since Fergie has fared in their first game

If the prospect of walking into the a dysfunctional Man United mid-season wasn't hard enough for Michael Carrick, surely facing Pep Guardiola immediately in a massive Manchester Derby only compounds the task at hand.

While the Englishman will fancy his chances of getting off to a winning start at Old Trafford, it's safe to say there could have been an easier first game.

Saturday's crunch tie presents Carrick's fourth match as United boss, having first served as interim in 2021 - but therein lies the problem. The Red Devils are burning through managers quicker than a matchbox in a volcano.

The 44-year-old will become the 12th boss - factoring in his first spell - to take charge of a United game since the departure of their legendary former leader Sir Alex Ferguson in May 2013 when he walks out at Old Trafford.

Carrick is tasked with qualifying for Europe and galvanising a side who, despite sitting seventh in the Premier League table, look bereft of confidence and had fallen off a cliff under sacked boss Ruben Amorim .

So, ahead of the new United boss's first match against City, Daily Mail Sport looks back at the first result of every Red Devils manager since Sir Alex waved goodbye to the United faithful.

Michael Carrick will face Man City in his first game as United boss until the end of the season

Carrick is United's 12th manager since the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson left the club in 2013

Dubbed 'the Chosen One' after Ferguson's retirement, Moyes won his first game as United manager against Wigan.

After winning the 2012-13 Premier League title, United faced the Latics in the Community Shield at Wembley, with a brace from Robin Van Persie securing Moyes' only trophy for the Red Devils via a 2-0 victory.

Less than a week later, the Scot also won his opening Premier League game with a 4-1 victory over Swansea City.

However, United's early promise under Moyes faltered and in April 2014, United sat seventh in the league and were eliminated from every other competition. Moyes was subsequently relieved of his duties just 10 months into a six-year contract.

Result - Man United 2-0 Wigan

David Moyes won the Community Shield in his first game in charge, with United beating Wigan

As United's most-capped player of all time, Giggs was appointed as a player-coach after Moyes was sacked.

His first game ended in a triumphant 4-0 victory over Norwich in the Premier League. Braces from Wayne Rooney and Juan Mata capped off a dominant performance at Old Trafford.

The Welshman made his 963rd and final appearance for the club after substituting himself on for Tom Lawrence in a 3-1 win over Hull City during his time in charge.

Giggs managed just four games for United, compiling a record of two wins, a draw and a loss. He was appointed as assistant manager the following season but left the club in 2016.

Result - Man United 4-0 Norwich City

Ryan Giggs enjoyed a short stint as interim boss and won his first game against Norwich 4-0

Van Gaal was appointed by United in May 2014, becoming their first ever non-British or Irish manager.

The Dutchman lost his first game in charge, a 2-1 defeat in the Premier League by Swansea. This was United's first home loss against the Welsh side since 1931.

Van Gaal came armed with 23 years of managerial experience, having previously coached the likes of Barcelona and Bayern Munich.

However, despite winning the FA Cup in his second season, a fifth-place Premier League finish led to his sacking in May 2016.

Result - Man United 1-2 Swansea City

Louis van Gaal's tenure got off to the worst possible start as United were beaten by Swansea

In typical Mourinho fashion, the 'Special One' led United to a trophy in his first game as manager as his side beat reigning Premier League champions Leicester 2-1 in the 2016 Community Shield.

Goals from Jesse Lingard and new signing Zlatan Ibrahimovic marked the start of the Mourinho era for the Red Devils.

He also enjoyed success in his first Premier League game, winning 3-1 away at Bournemouth, while the Portuguese went on to win the Europa League and League Cup in his first year at United.

However, after a miserable run of form left his side 11 points off the top four, Mourinho was sacked a week before Christmas in 2018, midway through his third season in charge.

Result - Man United 2-1 Leicester City

Like Moyes, Jose Mourinho managed to win the Community Shield in his first game in charge

Solskjaer was appointed as an interim manager the day after Mourinho was let go and had three days to prepare for his first game against former club Cardiff, where he endured a difficult nine-month stint .

In emphatic fashion, United beat them 5-1, marking the start of a fairytale run of form for the Norwegian.

After winning 14 of his 19 games in interim charge, Solskjaer took over as manager on a permanent basis. He went on to lead United to sixth, third and second in the Premier League over his first two-and-a-half seasons in charge.

However, despite Cristiano Ronaldo's blockbuster return to the club in 2021, United had one of their worst starts to a Premier League season ever. Solskjaer was sacked after a disastrous 4-1 defeat by Watford, with his side languishing in seventh in the table.

Result - Cardiff City 1-5 Man United

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer secured a thumping 5-1 win over Cardiff City after replacing Mourinho

After serving as an assistant under Solskjaer, Carrick was named caretaker manager on November 21, 2021. United travelled to Villarreal in the Champions League just two days later.

Late goals from Ronaldo and Jadon Sancho sealed a 2-0 win for the Red Devils and their advancement to the last-16 in the competition.

Carrick only took charge of two more games, both in the Premier League. He drew his first league game 1-1 with Chelsea, then led his side to a 3-2 victory over Arsenal at Old Trafford.

Stepping down as interim coach, he left United with immediate effect and joined Middlesbrough as permanent manager in October 2022.

Result - Villarreal 0-2 Man United

Michael Carrick oversaw an impressive 2-0 victory against Villarreal in the Champions League

Rangnick was United's top candidate as interim manager and replaced Carrick in December 2021.

His first game ended in a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace at home. He went on to lose only one of his next 10 games, before the Devils' form dipped significantly.

Rangnick's efforts were only enough to earn a sixth-place league finish at the end of the season.

The original agreement for the German to stay at Old Trafford as consultant was abandoned, with Rangnick instead agreeing a deal to take over Austria, where he has been hugely successful.

In poetic fashion, his last game at United was a 1-0 defeat by Palace in the Premier League.

Result - Man United 1-0 Crystal Palace

Ralf Rangnick won his first game in charge before his brief tenure unravelled dramatically

In April 2022, Ten Hag was appointed as United's permanent manager, tasked with overseeing a major rebuild after a difficult end to the previous season under Rangnick.

On August 7, he lost his first game in charge, a 2-1 league defeat to Brighton at Old Trafford.

It ensured the Dutchman endured a nightmare start after Pascal Gross' first half doubled stunned home fans as United were completely outplayed.

The following week, United were embarrassed away at Brentford, losing 4-0, with Ten Hag becoming the first United manager since John Chapman in 1921 to lose his first two games in charge.

After leading the Red Devils to an eight-place finish in the Premier League finish last season, the board decided to keep him after he won the FA Cup.

However, with United 14th in the league after nine games, the hammer fell on Ten Hag on Monday, as the club look to begin a new era under Sir Jim Ratcliffe's ownership.

Result - Man United 1-2 Brighton

Ten Hag's nightmare first game saw United shocked by Brighton as they were beaten 2-1

United had just three days until their next fixture after sacking Erik ten Hag last month. Naturally, the responsibility for leading the team in the short term fell to the Dutchman's assistant, United legend Van Nistelrooy.

The 48-year-old, who scored 150 goals in 219 games for United between 2001 and 2006, had previously managed Eredivisie giants PSV and he showed his ease in the hot seat during his interim spell in charge.

The first of a four-game reign began with a Carabao Cup tie against newly-promoted Leicester. Despite their struggles in the Premier League, Steve Cooper's side retain a threat and would almost certainly have caused problems for Ten Hag's United.

But with the team now liberated of the former Ajax boss they immediately became a free-scoring outfit against and found the net five times - something they failed to do against another Premier League during Ten Hag's reign.

The Foxes were similarly accommodating in their league fixture 10 days later, going down by the same margin. Those Old Trafford clashes with the east Midlands outfit bookended an impressive four-game spell that included a 1-1 draw with Chelsea and 2-0 win over Greek side PAOK.

Result - Man United 5-2 Leicester City

Ruud van Nistelrooy had emotional farewell at United after his unbeaten spell in charge

There was a great deal of hype around the arrival of Amorim, the up-and-coming Portuguese boss who had won two of his country's leagues and four of their cups.

United, making their first permanent appointment of the Sir Jim Ratcliffe INEOS era, agreed an early release fee to bring him to Old Trafford from Sporting Lisbon on the back of van Nistelrooy's four-game unbeaten run.

Amorim's first test was away to Ipswich and in the opposing dugout was Kieran McKenna, who was linked with the Old Trafford hotseat himself after ten Hag's sacking.

So when Marcus Rashford put United 1-0 up after just 80 seconds, Ratcliffe and Co must've thought they'd picked the right man. Unfortunately for Amorim, Ipswich midfielder Omari Hutchinson responded with a curled screamer into the top corner.

And in truth, if it wasn't for Andre Onana, perhaps the home side could have won. With Amorim, his tenure ended in the way it started, a stalemate away from home.

Result - Ipswich Town 1-1 Man United

Ruben Amorim's United tenure ended in the way it began - with a 1-1 draw away from home

Fletcher was installed as caretaker in the immediate aftermath of Amorim's explosive falling out with the United hierarchy - and was given just two days to prepare for a trip to Turf Moor.

The Scot, who played more than 300 times for the club, said he even phoned Sir Alex to get his 'blessing' to take charge of the match away to Burnley.

'I've got a really good relationship with Sir Alex, so he's probably the first person on the phone actually,' he said. I wanted to speak to him first, and ultimately to get his blessing to be perfectly honest with you.

But United looked far from their all-conquering days of the 2000s as they failed to get a win over the line against the Lancashire against who have languished in the relegation zone all campaign.

It was thought that Fletcher, who was briefly promoted from managing United's Under 18s side, could join Carrick's coaching staff, but that has not transpired and he has returned to his role.

Result - Burnley 2-2 Man United

Darren Fletcher drew his first game as United caretaker away to relegation candidates Burnley