Ole Gunnar Solskjær | 2021/22 Discussion

[Hackman2210]

Rant - for me Ole completely bottled the selection. Biggest game of the season and he puts fear of upsetting players over strongest team. Rashford, bailly should have been on the bench.
Why didn’t he start with Fred, McT and pogba? He absolutely shit out of dropping rashford and then to compound matters he takes of Greenwood and not Rashford!! Gutless from Ole.
Bailly over tuanzebe - another gutless selection.
He left himself with nowhere to go playerwise. It clearly wasn’t working why not put matic, VDB, amad mata on?? Cmon we should have beaten them in normal time, easily.
Solskhaer needs to shape up or feck off.
He hasn’t got it at present full stop.

 

[Mickeza]

One thing I noted was Ferguson's reaction after Axel scored and it was one of joy. Ole looked very apprehensive/anxious throughout most of the entire penalty shootout. Contrast that with Emery's poise during the shootout and there seems to be a big distance in terms of mental strength. Now Ole may have been overjoyed to see Axel score too due to the camera changing but I think looking dejected through most of it isn't a good sign of leadership. There has been talk of the team being 'bottlers' but I think some of the blame can be pinned on Ole. I am in the 'I don't know' camp when it comes to him.

We scored 10/11 penalties. I don’t think Ole looking nervous during a final penalty shoot out caused De Gea to miss did it? feck me.

 

[Mainoldo]

This is laughably dishonest. Ole took over a team in 6th, and in freefall, and if you have to pretend otherwise to back up your argument then maybe your argument isn't very good.

The squad finished 2nd. If Ole got sacked in October and we was 9th. We aren’t 9th place team.

I’m not pretending about anything. The team was better than 6th. I mean their form is the reason he got the job. He couldn’t do that with the team you claimed he had.

 

[mancan92]

Why are 99% the defense of Ole hypothetical?

IF he signs X/Y...IF he gets rid...IF...IF...

Truth lies somewhere between the two sides but last night really illustrated his lack of guts and game management.

Truly awful decisions made throughout the match.

Take a look at any of the recent Fergie interviews, that's a winning mentality, roll the dice, take a chance. Ole is far too risk averse and I can't see that ever changing. He's a defensive coach with the soundbites of an attacking one.

He probably deserves to start the next season due to our slightly improved league form, but I expect this debate will rumble on because he will always flatter to deceive in the long term.

Time to get your Ole Defenders bingo cards ready because you're going to see all the classics in the coming weeks. "The board let him down!", "He needs a (insert position here) before he can compete!", "Even Fergie would struggle to get a tune out of this team!", "What has Poch won?".

Exactly how can anyone watch sir Alex's interviews and believe he is OK with that kind of performance. If need be sir Alex would of thrown on 18 year olds and got them to push for the win. He has thrown the likes of John oshea up front ffs and got a win. Ole is a coward.

 

[flappyjay]

He needs the players. If he doesn't get them then we'll be at this exact same debate all over again next season

He needs the players to win the ucl/pl but not the other cups. We got knocked out by leicester in the FA Cup, the are around our level. Then got beat by Villarreal last night, the players we got now should be able to beat Villarreal.

 

[dove]

He won the league because the Italian league is pish standard at the moment

anyway I was referring more to his judgement

I remember some guy in La Liga thread downplaying Atletico's title win arguing La Liga is basically farmers league too I am not saying Serie A is at it's peak but Conte is clearly a good manager and did a good job at Inter. His character is explosive and difficult but I don't think we should question his managerial abilities.

 

[Inigo Montoya]

Rant - for me Ole completely bottled the selection. Biggest game of the season and he puts fear of upsetting players over strongest team. Rashford, bailly should have been on the bench.
Why didn’t he start with Fred, McT and pogba? He absolutely shit out of dropping rashford and then to compound matters he takes of Greenwood and not Rashford!! Gutless from Ole.
Bailly over tuanzebe - another gutless selection.
He left himself with nowhere to go playerwise. It clearly wasn’t working why not put matic, VDB, amad mata on?? Cmon we should have beaten them in normal time, easily.
Solskhaer needs to shape up or feck off.
He hasn’t got it at present full stop.

The only thing you get right is the first word- rant. Thereafter it's pretty awful as a post TBH

 

[Hackman2210]

We should never have been relying on de gea to score a penalty. The players should have been doing a lap of honour at that stage not hoping David can hit the back of the net. Piss poor from too many in a red shirt. Keep shaw, Greenwood, Cavani Bruno Scott and de gea. Burn the rest.

 

[RussellWilson]

While no football expert, I feel like Solskjaer probably needed better tactics than happy birthday matt busby.

 

[Infra-red]

Ole bottled it. It was the biggest and most high profile game in his managerial career and he was a deer in the headlights, too paralysed by fear to do or change anything.

He's completely out of his depth.

 

[Hackman2210]

The only thing you get right is the first word- rant. Thereafter it's pretty awful as a post TBH

Well I must be psychic then because as soon as I saw the team I knew we’d struggle. That formation has failed more than it’s worked this year. Too much reliance on one man to make up for overall poor play. Without Bruno - solsjaer would be long gone.

 

[Inigo Montoya]

He needs the players to win the ucl/pl but not the other cups. We got knocked out by leicester in the FA Cup, the are around our level. Then got beat by Villarreal last night, the players we got now should be able to beat Villarreal.

Same players beat City but lost to Sheffield Utd and limped home in the league.

We're far too inconsistent and our form in the final stages was god awful. No squad depth to shake it up, losing our captain and an out of form striker withanother clearly not 100%....players not showing up in the biggest game of the season.
Sums it up.

 

[The Hilton]

The squad finished 2nd. If Ole got sacked in October and we was 9th. We aren’t 9th place team.

I’m not pretending about anything. The team was better than 6th. I mean their form is the reason he got the job. He couldn’t do that with the team you claimed he had.

You are absolutely being dishonest about what Ole inherited, which was a squad that had downed tools, included large amounts of toxicity, and had a better chance of being relegated than finishing 2nd again if he hadn't taken over mid season.

Within his first 2 full seasons, he's delivered our only back to back finishes in the CL places since SAF retired. Suggesting he's done nothing for us is completely ridiculous.

You could quite easily make the argument that Ole won't take us to the next level, I'm not convinced myself, but to have any credibility you need to acknowledge the good job he's done stabilising us.

 

[Mickson]

Ole has had 2.5 seasons and spent £307m to improve on what he had before. Maguire £78m, Bissaka £50m, Fernandes £50m, VDB £35m etc. Taking out his half season only CIty have spent more.

With expenditure this summer it could rise to anywhere between £350-£500m. I don't think anyone can say he hasn't had backing, the question is whether Ole is the right man to get the best out of this side. As an outsider i'd say not

But he hasn't been backed and needs another £300m to beat the mighty Villarreal and Leicester

 

[IncyWincySpider]

Exactly how can anyone watch sir Alex's interviews and believe he is OK with that kind of performance. If need be sir Alex would of thrown on 18 year olds and got them to push for the win. He has thrown the likes of John oshea up front ffs and got a win. Ole is a coward.

SAF probably would have taken Rashford, Bruno and Pogba off toward the end and brought on Amad, DVB and Mata just to try something. I was really disappointed by the use of subs last night, it felt like a huge fail.

Ole looked absolutely sick towards the end of ninety minutes, like he knew they'd already lost. A night to forget that's for sure.

 

[mancan92]

SAF probably would have taken Rashford, Bruno and Pogba off toward the end and brought on Amad, DVB and Mata just to try something. I was really disappointed by the use of subs last night, it felt like a huge fail.

Ole looked absolutely sick towards the end of ninety minutes, like he knew they'd already lost. A night to forget that's for sure.

Exactly people act like you need your best players on all the time or you need the best players in the world. You don't sometimes you just need to have a go. The top managers always do.

 

[Ali Dia]

Same players beat City but lost to Sheffield Utd and limped home in the league.

We're far too inconsistent and our form in the final stages was god awful. No squad depth to shake it up, losing our captain and an out of form striker withanother clearly not 100%....players not showing up in the biggest game of the season.
Sums it up.

If Ole had actually rotated and shown some trust in the players on the fringes throughout the season and dropped Rashford when he started this walking around business we wouldn’t be perceived as being so short on options. His lack of subs last night summed it up perfectly. Our bench was worth more than their whole squad but still not good enough to knick a goal in regular time? Something really doesn’t add up anymore. I’m Ole in but with major doubts. A ruthless win at all costs manager would have changed it up a lot earlier in the season. He’s just their pal isn’t he.

 

[nainaisson]

Which players would the Ole outers have brought on to change the game up? Weren't all our best players out there? Would Donny, Mata, Amad or Dan James have given us a better chance to open up their defense? I'm not sure

Ole brought on a bunch of kids at the end of the "Miracle in Paris" game, one of whom won us the penalty that got us through to the next round.

A player's quality matters little when he becomes too tired to run. Any of Mata, VdB, and Amad are at least as good as the typical Villarreal player, and with fresh legs could have tipped the balance.

I have no idea why Ole has decided the best way to win a close game is to run his best players into the ground. It's incompetent in-game management, plain and simple.

Still not Ole-out, though, since I like what he's done to the squad. Plus, I couldn't care less about the Europa League.

 

[DeSign]

We scored 10/11 penalties. I don’t think Ole looking nervous during a final penalty shoot out caused De Gea to miss did it? feck me.

You missed the point entirely. I think most of us would prefer a more confident looking manager during a penalty shoot out. That is all.

 

[Siorac]

Weren't all our best players out there? Would Donny, Mata, Amad or Dan James have given us a better chance to open up their defense? I'm not sure

They surely couldn't have been worse than what the starting XI produced in extra time (and in the last 15-20 minutes of the second half as well, to be fair).

 

[Andycoleno9]

Man Utd manager after 3 seasons in charge still talking about progress and rebuilding. How someone can still buy that shit? It us like he inherited some young, mid table team so he needs 4,5 seasons to get them on right track.

All other big clubs sack their managers after one bad season and move on. We will go in 4th season with him. Unbelievable how he managed to drop standards around this club.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

I'll be genuinely amazed if he is still your manager next season.

Nah his place as United manager is very secure for next season. All I can hope for is that we have a brilliant transfer window as I don't see this team being brilliantly coached

 

[balaks]

Nah his place as United manager is very secure for next season. All I can hope for is that we have a brilliant transfer window as I don't see this team being brilliantly coached

Any other big club would sack him this summer

 

[Kaos]

I've said time and time again - simply not good enough, and will likely never be. We can't just wish it into existence with sheer persistence hoping he one day turns into an elite manager capable of challenging for the best prizes.

I'm Ole out but the depressing thing is I'm not even sure who I'd replace him with. Nagelsmann and Rose have just joined new clubs in Germany, Allegri is going Juve, Conte just feels like it'll end up in tears.

My only hope is he actually brings in some competent, elite coaches to surround himself with, and that the club back him with transfers so we can at least build a team that's good enough to win most games on its own, in spite of its manager.

 

[Di Maria's angel]

We've literally played 99% of our games the same way and people still can't understand why we lost? The same lethargic, disinterested 1st half performances in almost every game is down to the manager. Either he doesn't see a problem or he can't fix it.

 

[DomesticTadpole]

I've said time and time again - simply not good enough, and will likely never be. We can't just wish it into existence with sheer persistence hoping he one day turns into an elite manager capable of challenging for the best prizes.

I'm Ole out but the depressing thing is I'm not even sure who I'd replace him with. Nagelsmann and Rose have just joined new clubs in Germany, Allegri is going Juve, Conte just feels like it'll end up in tears.

My only hope is he actually brings in some competent, elite coaches to surround himself with, and that the club back him with transfers so we can at least build a team that's good enough to win most games on its own, in spite of its manager.

Big rumour Poch going back to Spurs.

 

[Botim]

Here's a telling quote:

Despite winning the toss to decide which team takes their penalty first, United’s skipper on the night Bruno Fernandes chose to go second – even though statistically that is a disadvantage.
Solskjaer, though, played down the importance of the midfielder’s decision and was happy with how his penalty takers performed.
‘I’ve not asked Bruno who won the toss, I let him get on with it,’ explained the Norwegian.

He's a great man manager, but I think he just lacks that obsession with details that top managers have. No way SAF (or Guardiola, Klopp) would be so lax with decisions like these. A true winner is relentless.

 

[Okey]

I agree. He will get next season, but what will be progress.
1. Getting nearer to the team who win the league?
2. Getting out of the CL group stage?
3. Winning a trophy, any fecking trophy?
4. Learning how to defend properly?
5. Not being baffled by the low block?
6. Showing a bit of ruthlessness if someone is not performing to the standard we expect?

There has to be a trophy next season. Any. And a proper title push, if not winning the whole shebang. He's free to choose his methods, and we'll judge the outcome. We've made progress in 2 seasons. Come close to winning. Not hard to gauge what the next progress is...actual winning!

 

[Kaos]

Big rumour Poch going back to Spurs.

I'd get crucified for saying this, but I wouldn't be opposed to having him replace Ole. Yes, like Ole he's won diddly squat in terms of honours, but he seems to have more of a defined approach to how he sets up his teams and approaches games as opposed to 'give it Bruno and lets have a fantastikk game' while waiting refusing to make subs.

 

[gorky_utd]

0 trophies in two and half season. Just because he has secured top 4 he will be allowed to continue. Tells you about the greed and ambition of the owners. No big club would tolerate this failure.

 

[Okey]

Oh, and no new contract please. That would be godawful. Let him earn it this time.

 

[Mickeza]

You missed the point entirely. I think most of us would prefer a more confident looking manager during a penalty shoot out. That is all.

Ah right. Perfectly rational criticism. Not a big fan of his clothes either.

 

[b82REZ]

Here's a telling quote:



He's a great man manager, but I think he just lacks that obsession with details that top managers have. No way SAF (or Guardiola, Klopp) would be so lax with decisions like these. A true winner is relentless.

I get the feeling sometimes that Ole is more concerned about being seen as one of the boys, and that affects his leadership.

Can anyone honestly envision him bollocking a player?

 

[Siorac]

I've said time and time again - simply not good enough, and will likely never be. We can't just wish it into existence with sheer persistence hoping he one day turns into an elite manager capable of challenging for the best prizes.

I'm Ole out but the depressing thing is I'm not even sure who I'd replace him with. Nagelsmann and Rose have just joined new clubs in Germany, Allegri is going Juve, Conte just feels like it'll end up in tears.

My only hope is he actually brings in some competent, elite coaches to surround himself with, and that the club back him with transfers so we can at least build a team that's good enough to win most games on its own, in spite of its manager.

I wouldn't sack him now because there simply isn't an outstanding candidate available. Our timing on hiring and firing managers could not have been worse if we tried over the last eight years; I'd rather wait for the 'next Klopp' instead of appointing another Van Gaal or Mourinho now. In that sense, Solskjaer is a relatively safe bet. We won't achieve anything but in all likelihood we won't fall apart either. We'll just need to be ruthless when someone of the required calibre becomes available.

 

[Paxi]

He's done enough to continue next season.

 

[Andycoleno9]

This is laughably dishonest. Ole took over a team in 6th, and in freefall, and if you have to pretend otherwise to back up your argument then maybe your argument isn't very good.

No. Ole inherited a team which in two seasons won two trophies and finished second in league (which is another trophy according to some of you). Then Ole spent 300 mil euros and in 3 seasons won nothing and didn't even reached points in league which Jose had.

So if Jose was shit and team was full of shit players, how come Ole can't even come close to what shit manager did with shit players? Where is progress there?

 

[Harold_Giles]

Man Utd manager after 3 seasons in charge still talking about progress and rebuilding. How someone can still buy that shit? It us like he inherited some young, mid table team so he needs 4,5 seasons to get them on right track.

All other big clubs sack their managers after one bad season and move on. We will go in 4th season with him. Unbelievable how he managed to drop standards around this club.

I seem to remeber Klopp got Liverpool 8th, 4th, 4th, 2nd in the 4 seasons prior to their title win.

With Ole we're looking at 6th (half a season), 3rd, 2nd.

The board should back him with a few quality signings this summer.
Next season we need to challenge or else he's gone.
If it goes to shit, at least our next manager won't have to inherit the shambles our previous managers put together.
We actually have a decent squad quality and age wise.

 

[Apokalips]

SAF probably would have taken Rashford, Bruno and Pogba off toward the end and brought on Amad, DVB and Mata just to try something. I was really disappointed by the use of subs last night, it felt like a huge fail.

Ole looked absolutely sick towards the end of ninety minutes, like he knew they'd already lost. A night to forget that's for sure.

Big coaches affect the game in big moments and Ole just doesn't do that, he sits back and hopes the players produce something for him. Fergie brought off Rooney in a CL Final, he would have no qualms to bring off Rashford and chuck on Amad or something. We would have ended with all of our attackers on the pitch and really put Villarreal under the cosh, especially as they were content to defend we would have truly tested them and not just limped to penalties.

Even if we had won on pens last night I was disappointed, because that performance was dire and is not a one off under this regime. I think Ole has gone as far as he can with us and we need to get a top class and proactive, brave coach to take us forward.

 

[DixieDean]

Any other big club would sack him this summer

That's what I think, as well. I'm sort of baffled that the man has a defence force, tbh.

 

[Water Melon]

He won't be sacked this summer, however, I am absolutely sure he will do worse in the Prem next season. Liverpool will get much better, so will the chavs. City are very likely to sign a top top striker and become well and truly ruthless. Ourselves, on the other hand, are very likely to continue playing out from the back (a.k.a. our arses ) and stick to our spontaneous and uncoordinated pressing.