Ole Gunnar Solskjaer | W15 D2 L4

[nameischarles]

PSG is a bonus. If we win that great, if not, it's not the end of the world.

Top 4 finish and an Fa Cup should get him the job. Finish outside the top 4 and it's up for debate

That's a bit unfair to say if he finishes outside the top 4 then it's up for debate. This wasn't his squad, he took over during a time when morale was very low, he had to implement his ways very quickly and the players have responded to it, some players are even praising him and his getting the best out of it with what he has to work with.

If we miss the top 4 by just a few points and showed intent in winning the cup games but just falling short. We should be proud of what he has done in a short period of time when a few months back we were certain will finish 6th and Mourinho to be sacked by the end of the season.

I think the board will look at what he has done overall with the squad and I'm sure the board has been impressed. If we finish the season on a high I believe he's got the job.

 

[Maxin]

That's a bit unfair to say if he finishes outside the top 4 then it's up for debate. This wasn't his squad, he took over during a time when morale was very low, he had to implement his ways very quickly and the players have responded to it, some players are even praising him and his getting the best out of it with what he has to work with.

If we miss the top 4 by just a few points and showed intent in winning the cup games but just falling short. We should be proud of what he has done in a short period of time when a few months back we were certain will finish 6th and Mourinho to be sacked by the end of the season.

I think the board will look at what he has done overall with the squad and I'm sure the board has been impressed. If we finish the season on a high I believe he's got the job.

He must get the job. Who else fits in? Ole is the right man for United. Give this man time for once.

 

[Casanova85]

The legend keeps on growing. 10 matches, undefeated, 28 points out of 30, Arse already behind, 4th place not a dream anymore, but a tangible objective.

 

[Casanova85]

He must get the job. Who else fits in? Ole is the right man for United. Give this man time for once.

He deserves it already. Manager for 2019-20, fully backed-up.

 

[MikeKing]

The truly unique thing about Ole is that he puts the club before his own ego. This is something we know for a fact, and something you only get with former players, if they are good enough and even then you get it only if you are lucky. He is a humble guy.
If he becomes successful for us he would never seek another job if he got an offer from somewhere else.

 

[Sterling Archer]

He must get the job. Who else fits in? Ole is the right man for United. Give this man time for once.

He has brought the United spirit back to the club. You're right. There's no one else that fits at this moment. You listen to the young starts in the squad - Pogba, Rashford, Martial - and you can tell he's motivating them not just well, but to be United players. I don't think this is the right time to bring in another outside manager. And if the season continues as such you'd be asking for failure by hiring anyone but Ole.

 

[shamans]

I'm on the Ole train but what I find really interesting is how similar him and Poch are. Both are "nice guys" with smiles all around. I want us to give Ole a chance despite the fact that I think there may yet be some of his weaknesses that we'll see as time goes by. Every manager has weaknesses and right now we don't really know Ole's which is a bit concerning.

 

[Rash Decision]

I think these 1-0 away wins against decent opposition tells you much more about the management team than us battering some of the weaker teams at home. This result actually impressed me, kept a clean sheet despite not playing all the well and limited Leicester to a few chances.

Agree with this as long as it isn't the start of a downward trend. We used to say the same about some of our wins under Mourinho before we caught on that the performances weren't going to improve.

A 10-game (mostly) winning streak is nothing to be sniffed at. That said, there's still plenty of time for things to go wrong (or right). Now that the first flush of the new manager bounce is over, I think we'll start to see more of what the norm under Ole would be like, of course bearing in mind that he came in mid-season and the squad deficiencies.

 

[Gandalf Greyhame]

Difficult to read much from some games, honestly. The performance was as bad as it gets with all our previous shortcomings popping up. Comical defending, aimless GK distribution, no one tackling at the edge of the box, poor movement while going forward, sloppy passing, frequent losses in possession, missed chances, ugly low-quality football bar a moment of magic from a couple of players - we had it all. Were Ole's tactics off or was their implementation off? How come we got worse in the second half? Why couldn't we change the game with effective subs?

He is not helped by the fact that the squad players (that's what Lukaku and Sanchez have become) are not stepping up. If no one in the starting XI has any competition breathing down their backs, what motivation will they have to keep getting better at a stage where they have 8 wins in 9? Where is the motivation to keep scoring 3 every game? I thought it was Mourinho's poor tactics, but some of our players are truly not good enough. Sanchez did not grab his opportunity, Rashford's selfish choices not putting him through notwithstanding. Lukaku was abysmal once he came on. Bailly looked as volatile as ever, a great clearance one moment to a moment of madness the other. Add Pereira to the list, and you genuinely wonder how we are still wining with our starting XI so knackered and their replacements being so awful. Luke Shaw's yellow was lazy defending, for instance, and he had a quiet game. If we had another good LB, we could have dropped him for the next game and rotated. Same for Young at RB. Our squad depth is not very good, we're probably slightly worse off than both Arsenal and Chelsea in that regard.

We have to assess Ole keeping the limitations of the squad in mind. Even in our starting XI, we have mediocre full backs, a shaky CB next to Lindelof, and no right wing. I read that Pogba has been involved in more than 50% of our goals under Ole, it is scary to think where we would be without him. Ole is doing miracles keeping us in the race for top four, to be honest. February is going to be brutal.

 

[Cardozo]

We’re about to hit a fixture list we would be embarrassed to be part of a few months ago.

Mourinho saying there’s no way we are champions league winning team. How Chelsea were far superior than our squad and Liverpool had all the money in the world compared to us.

I’m so grateful for Ole, even if we do get beaten by all 3. He won’t be a spineless cretin in his post match interviews. He’ll share the pain and understand he might be getting it wrong rather than just his players.

 

[Beagle]

I don't get those worrying about transfers business if we sign Ole.

First, players who sign for the manager only, isn't going to last at any club very long because managers don't stay long term anymore. Most players sign for the club first and foremost.

And second, if we hire a DOF, he should be responsible for transfers, not the coach anyway.

And I imagine players would love to sign for a manager who has himself scored the winner in a CL final.

 

[Kapardin]

Difficult to read much from some games, honestly. The performance was as bad as it gets with all our previous shortcomings popping up. Comical defending, aimless GK distribution, no one tackling at the edge of the box, poor movement while going forward, sloppy passing, frequent losses in possession, missed chances, ugly low-quality football bar a moment of magic from a couple of players - we had it all. Were Ole's tactics off or was their implementation off? How come we got worse in the second half? Why couldn't we change the game with effective subs?

He is not helped by the fact that the squad players (that's what Lukaku and Sanchez have become) are not stepping up. If no one in the starting XI has any competition breathing down their backs, what motivation will they have to keep getting better at a stage where they have 8 wins in 9? Where is the motivation to keep scoring 3 every game? I thought it was Mourinho's poor tactics, but some of our players are truly not good enough. Sanchez did not grab his opportunity, Rashford's selfish choices not putting him through notwithstanding. Lukaku was abysmal once he came on. Bailly looked as volatile as ever, a great clearance one moment to a moment of madness the other. Add Pereira to the list, and you genuinely wonder how we are still wining with our starting XI so knackered and their replacements being so awful. Luke Shaw's yellow was lazy defending, for instance, and he had a quiet game. If we had another good LB, we could have dropped him for the next game and rotated. Same for Young at RB. Our squad depth is not very good, we're probably slightly worse off than both Arsenal and Chelsea in that regard.

We have to assess Ole keeping the limitations of the squad in mind. Even in our starting XI, we have mediocre full backs, a shaky CB next to Lindelof, and no right wing. I read that Pogba has been involved in more than 50% of our goals under Ole, it is scary to think where we would be without him. Ole is doing miracles keeping us in the race for top four, to be honest. February is going to be brutal.

Like Jose, Ole can be judged only if he brings in his own players. Though he's doing well with the current group of players, the fact remains that it really and probably isn't "his squad". He's maximizing resources inherited from previous managers but I'm sure if given a choice, he would probably upgrade on some players.

So far, we at least have an idea of the style he wants to play. We saw that in most of the games. Now, he should be able to implement that style consistently if he is backed in the transfer market to bring in the players he wants. The question is whether we are willing to take the plunge and give him that chance.

 

[Patrick08]

Difficult to read much from some games, honestly. The performance was as bad as it gets with all our previous shortcomings popping up. Comical defending, aimless GK distribution, no one tackling at the edge of the box, poor movement while going forward, sloppy passing, frequent losses in possession, missed chances, ugly low-quality football bar a moment of magic from a couple of players - we had it all. Were Ole's tactics off or was their implementation off? How come we got worse in the second half? Why couldn't we change the game with effective subs?

He is not helped by the fact that the squad players (that's what Lukaku and Sanchez have become) are not stepping up. If no one in the starting XI has any competition breathing down their backs, what motivation will they have to keep getting better at a stage where they have 8 wins in 9? Where is the motivation to keep scoring 3 every game? I thought it was Mourinho's poor tactics, but some of our players are truly not good enough. Sanchez did not grab his opportunity, Rashford's selfish choices not putting him through notwithstanding. Lukaku was abysmal once he came on. Bailly looked as volatile as ever, a great clearance one moment to a moment of madness the other. Add Pereira to the list, and you genuinely wonder how we are still wining with our starting XI so knackered and their replacements being so awful. Luke Shaw's yellow was lazy defending, for instance, and he had a quiet game. If we had another good LB, we could have dropped him for the next game and rotated. Same for Young at RB. Our squad depth is not very good, we're probably slightly worse off than both Arsenal and Chelsea in that regard.

We have to assess Ole keeping the limitations of the squad in mind. Even in our starting XI, we have mediocre full backs, a shaky CB next to Lindelof, and no right wing. I read that Pogba has been involved in more than 50% of our goals under Ole, it is scary to think where we would be without him. Ole is doing miracles keeping us in the race for top four, to be honest. February is going to be brutal.

It gives a real indication the team lacks fitness and discipline off the pitch to back it up consistently on the pitch.

 

[Amadaeus]

So even after beating Barcelona and their current position in the league does not qualify them as a top team? If so, why should we be hankering after a manager who after so many years, have not made Spurs a top team but simply plucky underdogs as you imply?

Pochettino has not been supported financially by their club’s hierarchy, so you can’t expect him to reach the level of Europe’s elite when he has been fed bread crumbs.

If Pochettino spends even half of what the like Of City or United spent, Spurs would be an elite team as his current side is doing pretty well without investing in ready made quality players.

 

[Gasolin]

Ole needs to find ways to motivate Sanchez, Lukaku, Fred, Perrera... at least those players need to step up no matter what and start being useful for the club. We probably need a couple more too but the point is, those players should fight for their positions. They can't come on and not fight, because then, we will never progress as a group.

 

[sveisa]

I think his humble spirit means that he listens to advice. I don't think that was the case with the other three post SAF, who all seemed to insist on making the team "their" team.

 

[zenith]

Ole's commitment to attacking football is what for me is the primary reason he should get the job. Most of us watch football because it is entertaining and the affinity fit united is also in part owing to the brand of football we play.

The last three have been absolute disasters and have almost made me fall out of love with football. Ole otoh, has been a breath of fresh air, not to mention his loyalty to the club is beyond doubt. Ole deserves his chance and I really hope he gets it.

 

[Sterling Archer]

Pochettino has not been supported financially by their club’s hierarchy, so you can’t expect him to reach the level of Europe’s elite when he has been fed bread crumbs.

If Pochettino spends even half of what the like Of City or United spent, Spurs would be an elite team as his current side is doing pretty well without investing in ready made quality players.

Levvy is a smart man. After Spurs failed to beat Leicester City to the title in spectacular fashion when all the other rivals were flailing, I'm sure he decided splurging much more wouldn't be of much use.

 

[Bobcat]

Enjoy Paul Ince tripling down:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/47111521

The reality is that we don't know whether Solskjaer is the right man for that job, and the next four months won't tell us either.

So, who should get the United job in the summer? My choice would be Mauricio Pochettino because he has got a proven track record as a Premier League manager over several seasons. Solskjaer doesn't.
And, everything United need from their next manager, we know Pochettino can do - based on what we have seen from him at Tottenham.

Moving goal posts are we Ince? What if someone said this:

The reality is that we don't know whether Pochettino is the right man for that job, and the next four months won't tell us either.

So, who should get the United job in the summer? My choice would be Ole because he has got a proven track record as a United manager over several games. Pochettino doesn't.
And, everything United need from their next manager, we know Ole can do - based on what we have seen from him at United

 

[Tony247]

First time after Ole took over we can now mathematically achieve top 4 if we win rest all matches. This is phenomenal considering the season was written off before him.

 

[staniswin]

Ole's commitment to attacking football is what for me is the primary reason he should get the job. Most of us watch football because it is entertaining and the affinity fit united is also in part owing to the brand of football we play.

What attacking ? Did we just park the bus against Leicester ? but i am totally Ole in now cause He is smart , manipulative and wasn't naive, outside he is talking about United way this united way that , to cater United fanbase which 80 % of them understand nothing about football and spread positive vibe. But inside, he is even harsher than Jose Mourinho, he gave chance to Valencia and Pereira and drop them out completely from the squad after they let him down, Mctominay send to U23 and where is Fred ? even Mourinho played him more. Ole has no problem to shut the door tight and park the bus when we needed to, he has no problem to win ugly. Mourinho would be slated after doing all those things but not Ole cause he talk very smartly and not as honest compared, which probably why Mourinho lost the dressing room.

 

[BlueHaze]

First time after Ole took over we can now mathematically achieve top 4 if we win rest all matches. This is phenomenal considering the season was written off before him.

It truly is remarkable when you think of it. That loss against Liverpool, 11 points off a 4th place in december, many including myself writing off the season in november thinking Mourinho was going to stay till the end of the season so they could save money sacking him and here we are a short time later 2 points away. The people on here who were constantly slagging of the players and downplaying the managerial role should have been taught a lesson by this point. Never underestimate the role and the effect that a manager will bring to the team. Top 4 will still be a very tough task but even if we don't make it at least we all found joy in watching Man Utd again.

 

[KM]

If we say Cardiff = Stoke (Stoke second from bottom, Cardiff second from top) then compare fixtures since Ole took over to last season:

Cardiff/Stoke A: +2 (2-2 last season, 5-1 this season)
Huddersfield H: 0 (2-0 last season, 3-1 this season)
Bournemouth H: 0 (1-0 last season, 4-1 this season)
Newcastle A: +3 (0-1 last season, 2-0 this season)
Spurs A: +3 (0-2 last season, 1-0 this season)
Brighton H: 0 (1-0 last season, 2-1 this season)
Burnley H: 0 (2-2 last season, 2-2 this season)
Leicester A: +2 (2-2 last season, 1-0 this season)

+10 in total. Not bad!

Excellent post.

 

[flappyjay]

Going with a club seems to be working better for most clubs. Look at Milan now with Gattuso yet we see people clambering for poch. Not that he isn't a good manager but truth is we have tried the superstar managers and it hasn't worked out. Let's see how it goes for home grown talent

 

[Edgar Allan Pillow]

What attacking ? Did we just park the bus against Leicester ? but i am totally Ole in now cause He is smart , manipulative and wasn't naive, outside he is talking about United way this united way that , to cater United fanbase which 80 % of them understand nothing about football and spread positive vibe. But inside, he is even harsher than Jose Mourinho, he gave chance to Valencia and Pereira and drop them out completely from the squad after they let him down, Mctominay send to U23, he has no problem to shut the door tight and park the bus when we needed to, he has no problem to win ugly , just like SAF and Mourinho. Mourinho would be slated after doing all those things but not Ole cause he talk very smartly and not as honest compared, which probably why Mourinho lost the dressing room.

You sure you're not trolling?

Any fan (incl most opposition fans) can see the change in vibe in our players and in the way we play football. I don't have any clue how this is due to Ole's interviews. Surely that is a bizarre accusation to make?

Even if we are defending, we are doing it better as a team than we ever did under Mou. The players may be up against the wall, but the look for a quick counter is always there. Not just dumb passing under Mou.

Honestly what is obvious to most opposition fans not being seen by United fans is just bonkers.

 

[GBBQ]

For all Mourinho's talk of needing new signings in defence, its pretty funny that Ole is getting better performances out of the two centre backs that Mourinho signed. And it might not be down to anything more than relaxing the dressing room. Would be happy with Lindelof Bailly Smalling and one top class defender as our options for next season.

Yesterday's result was fine, Leicester have a bit about them so it was unlikely to be a walkover.

 

[el3mel]

Ole needs to find ways to motivate Sanchez, Lukaku, Fred, Perrera... at least those players need to step up no matter what and start being useful for the club. We probably need a couple more too but the point is, those players should fight for their positions. They can't come on and not fight, because then, we will never progress as a group.

Motivation is hardly these players problem.

 

[Samid]

First time after Ole took over we can now mathematically achieve top 4 if we win rest all matches. This is phenomenal considering the season was written off before him.

It's not the first time. We've had top 4 in our own hands since Arsenal beat Chelsea a couple of weeks ago.

 

[Tony247]

It's not the first time. We've had top 4 in our own hands since Arsenal beat Chelsea a couple of weeks ago.

huh, wonder how did I miss that! Thanks for correcting me.

 

[Wednesday at Stoke]

For all Mourinho's talk of needing new signings in defence, its pretty funny that Ole is getting better performances out of the two centre backs that Mourinho signed. And it might not be down to anything more than relaxing the dressing room. Would be happy with Lindelof Bailly Smalling and one top class defender as our options for next season.

Yesterday's result was fine, Leicester have a bit about them so it was unlikely to be a walkover.

I think Jones has been better than Bailly next to Lindelöf but that's a debate for a different thread.

 

[POF]

One of Fergie's great qualities was that after a poor result, he would make sure the team won the next game.

After the 2-2 against Burnley, this was a must win. Leicester away is a really tough game. It wasn't pretty but they ground it out and it was a vital 3 points.

Ole is doing an amazing job. The key now is to get some freshness in the squad. The team looks exhausted.

 

[Gasolin]

Motivation is hardly these players problem.

Well I say motivation because when you come on as a sub and you don't make a run to trouble the opposition defense... something is wrong, and it's not purely just the technical skill sets.

 

[IronCroos37]

I come from the near future and I saw 14 out of 16

 

[Infra-red]

The Ole (or possibly "anyone but Mourinho") bounce is over, and the next six weeks look brutal (PSG home, Chelsea away, Liverpool home, PSG away, Arsenal away, City home). This will be the period the board look back on when they're making their decisions in May/June - we're not getting through that lot unscathed without some very good coaching.

 

[Ducklegs]

Ole needs to find ways to motivate Sanchez, Lukaku, Fred, Perrera... at least those players need to step up no matter what and start being useful for the club. We probably need a couple more too but the point is, those players should fight for their positions. They can't come on and not fight, because then, we will never progress as a group.

I think he just needs to find buyers for them Lukaku already plays like he knows his days are numbered and Sanchez can’t be far off realising he will be gone in the summer as well.

 

[afrocentricity]

We still have a fundamentally flawed squad and Ole hasn't got a single player of his own choosing

If he does get the job and adds 3 of 4 players that suit his vision for the team (even if we do get a DOF the manager should always have a say over the players he works with) it will be fascinating to watch how things progress

I do wonder who the would be. Hope he gets the job so we can find out...

 

[hocane]

What attacking ? Did we just park the bus against Leicester ? but i am totally Ole in now cause He is smart , manipulative and wasn't naive, outside he is talking about United way this united way that , to cater United fanbase which 80 % of them understand nothing about football and spread positive vibe. But inside, he is even harsher than Jose Mourinho, he gave chance to Valencia and Pereira and drop them out completely from the squad after they let him down, Mctominay send to U23 and where is Fred ? even Mourinho played him more. Ole has no problem to shut the door tight and park the bus when we needed to, he has no problem to win ugly. Mourinho would be slated after doing all those things but not Ole cause he talk very smartly and not as honest compared, which probably why Mourinho lost the dressing room.

We didn't park the bus.

We tried to attack all game but players kept losing the ball while in possession. We had more possession than them but we kept making mistakes when on the ball.

We tried to attack but players had an off day. By no means did we park the bus, both teams had the same amounts of shots on target.

 

[ArjenIsM3]

The Ole (or possibly "anyone but Mourinho") bounce is over, and the next six weeks look brutal (PSG home, Chelsea away, Liverpool home, PSG away, Arsenal away, City home). This will be the period the board look back on when they're making their decisions in May/June - we're not getting through that lot unscathed without some very good coaching.

We won't come out of that lot unscathed. Period. We'll likely suffer some defeats. I just hope those come against PSG and not Chelsea. We need top four.

 

[Escobar]

The Ole (or possibly "anyone but Mourinho") bounce is over, and the next six weeks look brutal (PSG home, Chelsea away, Liverpool home, PSG away, Arsenal away, City home). This will be the period the board look back on when they're making their decisions in May/June - we're not getting through that lot unscathed without some very good coaching.

Any decision before end of season would be stupid. However, Ole can only work with what he has. Our midfield lack depth and most of our defenders are shit. So not all down to him to be fair but we need to see more from him and if he really can transform the team long term

 

[Marcelinho87]

We won't come out of that lot unscathed. Period. We'll likely suffer some defeats. I just hope those come against PSG and not Chelsea. We need top four.

Chelsea is the FA Cup so a loss would not hurt our chances of top 4.