Manchester United legend Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who delivered the treble in 1999, was arguably the club’s best manager after Sir Alex Ferguson. He is knowledgeable, tactically strong and inclusive. “Unfortunately, the perception on the ball island is obviously that a manager has to be mean to be good.
There are big problems again at Old Trafford and as Sky Sports concluded after Wednesday’s 4 – 1 loss to Como at the Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia in the Champions League. “Manchester United are the rat from top to bottom”
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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer once explained how Manchester United missed out on Erling Haaland.
Manchester United’s long slump since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013 shows no signs of abating, on the contrary, and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer once summed up their problems perfectly.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is considered by many outside Norway to be one of the best managers United have had in the last decade, even though he did not win any trophies during the three years he was the club’s boss from December 2018 to November 2021.
The legendary Red Devils striker left the club with the second-best winning record of any manager in the post-Ferguson era, and could perhaps have had an even more successful return to Old Trafford if the board had listened to his wishes.
Manchester United rejected Solskjaer’s desire to sign Erling Haaland
United have painfully missed out on some of the world’s best talent over the years – including Manchester City’s goal monster Erling Haaland, who could have ended up in the red section of Manchester if Solskjaer had had his way.
The 53-year-old coached Haaland when he was manager of Molde and knew the freak talent he possessed.
Therefore, Solskjaer was desperate to bring the striker to Manchester United in 2018, but the club ignored his advice – revealing that they could have secured what is probably the world’s best finisher for just £4 million at the time.
During “An Evening with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer” in 2023, according to The Athletic, the former United boss said: “I reached out to United because we had this talented striker that they should have had.
“But they didn’t listen, unfortunately. Four million, I asked for. But they never signed him. Four million! Don’t ask [where he is now]. He’s too good…”
Haaland has since helped City to two Premier League titles, two FA Cups and a Champions League following his move from Borussia Dortmund in 2022 – scoring nine goals in 11 games against the Red Devils.
The 26-year-old has finally made United pay the price for not having listened to Solskjaer’s advice several years ago, and this situation has become something the club is all too familiar with.
Michael Carrick has been let down by the United board
Michael Carrick is on the verge of being sacked by Manchester United after the humiliating 4-1 defeat to Como in the Champions League.
The Red Devils are now winless in their last seven games in all competitions, making it increasingly difficult for the club not to pull the trigger.
But even though it has been a disappointing start to the season, the pressure that is now being put on Carrick could have been avoided if the club had properly supported him in the transfer window.
United needed a new centre-back, left-back and striker. Instead, INEOS focused on signing midfielders, with the signings of Youri Tielemans, Andrey Santos and Carlos Baleba for a combined £155 million.
The fact that they did not invest in more than midfield reinforcements has only revealed the club’s lack of depth in several positions – particularly in defence, where Ayden Heaven has had to fill the left-back position in Luke Shaw’s absence, and Leny Yoro has been placed out of position at right-back.
Of course, Carrick’s tactics and decisions have not helped his cause, but many managers would struggle with the hand he has been dealt – and his predecessors will recognise the problems he faces.
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