Jamie Carragher feels the possibility of Pep Guardiola joining Manchester City may force Manchester United to go against their principles.

The Bayern Munich boss announced on Sunday that he would be leaving the German giants in the summer, opening the door for a potential move to the Etihad Stadium.

With Chelsea recently sacking Jose Mourinho and Louis van Gaal's job at Old Trafford under threat, there is the prospect of a managerial merry-go-round taking place at the end of the season.

This leads former Liverpool defender Carragher to believe that United could go against their ethos by bringing in someone like Mourinho in a bid to simply win trophies to keep up with their crosstown rivals rather than continuing their youth development as they have done for the past five decades.

"There'll be that thought of Pep Guardiola maybe going to Manchester City and they'll be thinking we're actually falling behind," Carragher said on Sky Sports on Monday night.

"They'll forget some of the principles that have made the club over the last 50 or 60 years; and they're just that desperate to get to back winning trophies."