Michael Carrick's future as Manchester United head coach is hanging by a thread after defeat to Bournemouth at Old Trafford pushed him closer to the brink.
It was the sixth time Carrick’s team have lost in 12 games this season as United sank to 16th place in the Premier League table, piling more pressure on the club to appoint a third manager this year.
Asked if he expects to be sacked, Carrick said: ‘I totally understand the situation. I'm not expecting anything either way.
‘I’m carrying on as normal. I love this place. I'll always do what I feel is going to be the best for the football club and I won’t change that now, whatever decision is made.
‘It's a tough situation, there's no hiding from it. What it looks like and what's next I really don't know. I love what I do and I feel the responsibility. We'll have to wait and see.
‘Of course, I take responsibility. I respect the position that I'm in, and the responsibility is mine. What else can I say really right now?
‘I've tried to do everything I can to not be in this position, of course I have. For a number of reasons, we've not been able to stop that happening to the position we're in right now.
Michael Carrick insists he was not saying farewell to Manchester United fans as he did a lap of Old Trafford after their 3-0 defeat by Bournemouth
‘I've been at the club a long time. It hurts an awful to see us going through this at this moment in time. The situation is where we are and we haven't had results or performances that have been good enough.’
Carrick said he had not spoken to chief executive Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox over his future. ‘No, just briefly they came down like they always do after a game, but nothing out of the ordinary,’ he added.
The United fans showed their support for Carrick, while turning on the club’s ownership, Wilcox and the players as United sank to a 3-0 defeat.
The 45-year-old looked visibly emotional as he walked around the pitch at the end thanking the fans and placing a hand over his heart.
‘It wasn't a farewell from me,’ Carrick insisted. ‘I probably didn't really expect that off the supporters, if I'm honest, but I've always felt the support and that connection with them.
‘It will take a bit of time to digest, but I certainly appreciate their support. It's difficult for me to have a day like this at this club and feel the emotion.
‘I'm feeling it for my players, they're going through a tough spell. There's a lot of emotion in the changing room right now, there's a lot of the boys quite hurt, to be fair.
‘It's not like they don't care or they want to be in this position. The ones I've spoken to, it’s affecting them a lot.’
Former United defender Gary Neville had a different view, however, telling Sky Sports: ‘They’ve downed tools and they’ve done this a number of times,’ said Neville. ‘They decide when to switch it on and off like a tap.’
Defender Harry Maguire - standing in as captain with Bruno Fernandes dropped following his criticism of the manager's tactics - spoke out in defence of Carrick at full time, saying: 'At the moment we're not doing enough as players. Michael turned our season on its head last year and we played brilliant football and got brilliant results. This season we haven't performed well enough as individuals.
'We have got to find something, question yourself, look in the mirror, that's the most important thing - think what you can do more and contribute to the team and if we do that we'll get somewhere.'
Former United defender Ashley Young, who won the 2012-13 Premier League title with the club, accused the players of 'giving up'.
'There have been different managers [in recent seasons] but it's the same players,' he said on Sky Sports. 'There have been a few changes in players but they're just not showing anything. You could tell today that it was like they'd given up - they're not running for this manager and they're not wanting to fight.
'The fans deserve so much more, you can tell they want more and they know he's been let down by those players.'
Jamie Carragher said that Carrick's position was 'untenable' at full time but he has also received widespread sympathy, with many considering the owners and top brass at the club to be culpable.
They recruited no defenders over the summer and are now shipping goals for fun - the only clean sheet they have kept all season was against Azerbaijani minnows Sabah.
The long-term decision-making of owners Sir Jim Ratcliffe and the Glazer family - as well as Berrada and Wilcox - has been called into question.
That was the subject of an explosive rant by Lisandro Martinez after the recent 2-0 loss to Atletico Madrid. The defender said earlier this month: 'I expect more (investment) 100 per cent. I expect more from our technical director. I have to be honest.
'As players we have to do more but it is also important when you make a strong squad to be ready for this kind of night.
'I have to control myself a lot but sometimes it's a reflection of the mirror of how our club is at the moment.
'We did a fantastic season last season and now we expect more from the top; more players to compete because many teams bring many players as well.'
But Carrick's authority over the players has been called into question after that swipe and the invective by Fernandes this week.
Club captain Fernandes was dropped after saying in the aftermatch of the Como drubbing: 'It's a decision from the staff to not press man to man and sometimes leave space behind and try to get the ball, wait for them, but sometimes when you give space to these teams they get confidence.'
Asked if he meant that Carrick got his tactics wrong, Fernandes added: ‘That's on the manager and staff to say, not me.
‘Sometimes you have to be more brave under pressure, take the risk of pressing high and making them uncomfortable. As you saw with Como, the centre back was coming to mark me in my own half. We need to do that as a team but we were unable to.'
Wayne Rooney lambasted Manchester United's players in the wake of such comments, describing the group as 'selfish' and 'like babies' amid a dismal run of form.
He told the United Stand podcast: 'These players, they're selfish. They don't care about their team-mates, don't care about the manager, the staff or the fans, they care about themselves. If they're not getting what's right for them, they're like babies and just throw their toys out of the pram and go and deflect the blame on to anyone else but themselves.'
Carrick admitted ahead of the Bournemouth match that the club has 'lost our way' in a five-minute speech.
He took over from Ruben Amorim on an interim basis last season, steering the club to third and Champions League qualification, but has won just two of 12 games this campaign.