West Ham's 1-1 draw against Aston Villa over the weekend was only enough to move the Hammers outside the Premier League relegation places on goal difference.

David Moyes seems safe for now but with a huge fixture against fellow strugglers Southampton next up in the top flight, the Scottish manager's job could soon be on the line.

A number of managers have been touted as potential successors to the 59-year-old at the London Stadium, with Jose Mourinho perhaps the most eye-catching of those linked.

However, a move for the Portuguese boss seems unrealistic at this point, and the Hammers could unearth their own version of the legendary manager in former player, Michael Carrick.

What's the latest West Ham manager news?

ExWHU Employee recently provided an update on the manager situation at West Ham, when speaking on The West Ham Way podcast.

He said: “There is no truth in the Jose rumours I can confirm. Firstly he would command such a ridiculously high wage which would break our structure.

”Also it’s felt he’s too controversial, having caused many problems at clubs he’s been with previously. Additionally, the club believe his career is now on the decline.

“Like I have said, I think in future we want to look for younger managers whose careers are on the up, with more modern and fresh ideas.

“Michael Carrick for instance fits that bill and is someone that the club admire.”

What is Michael Carrick's managerial record?

Carrick would earn his first permanent job in management at Middlesbrough earlier in the season, and he has completely transformed the club in his tenure on Teesside, taking Boro from 22nd to 3rd in the Championship, with automatic promotion now a very real possibility.

Lauded by Sky Sports' Michael Bridge for the "unbelievable" job he has done at Middlesbrough, Carrick has steered his new side to an impressive 2.14 points per game in all competitions, winning 15, drawing two and losing just five of his 22 games in charge thus far.

With Mourinho seemingly not on the cards for West Ham, who better to appoint than a young, English manager who has worked alongside the Roma boss during his time at Manchester United.

Indeed, like the 'Special One' he has seemingly had an instant knack within management for winning games of football.

Soccer Football - Europa League - Play-Off Second Leg - AS Roma v FC Salzburg - Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Italy - February 23, 2023 AS Roma coach Jose Mourinho REUTERS/Alberto Lingria

In fact, the 41-year-old spoke about his experience of working with the former Chelsea and Inter boss during an interview with the League of 72 recently.

He said (via talkSPORT): "It was fantastic, an unbelievable opportunity for me coming towards the end [of my career]. It kind of caught me by surprise."

"I don’t think you can ever expect an opportunity like that to come along even though I’d been at the club a long time. Seeing Jose close up and what he’d seen in players, how quickly he spotted strengths and weaknesses, he made up his mind very quickly and was very decisive tactically how he went about things."

Carrick will no doubt have learned a lot about what it takes to be a manager from the great Portuguese boss, and that winning mentality could well be crucial should West Ham hire him as Moyes' replacement.

He has already guided one side out of a relegation dogfight this season, perhaps it's now time for another.