Has Solskjaer landed the permanent United Job? Norway seems to think so!

SAM | 22nd March 2019

 

Despite the exciting to-and-fro race for the title between Manchester City and Liverpool, one of the biggest stories of the season has been the remarkable turnaround that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has achieved at Manchester United.

 

As a striker, the Norwegian tallied 127 goals in 364 games for United. When Solskjaer arrived at the legendary club as the interim manager, it was understood that he was effectively loaned from his then-current club Molde, in Norway. But now, as he suggests in this interview, his contract with Molde has supposedly expired, which, as it stands, leaves him as a free agent this summer.

 

Manchester United are yet to appoint the former sharpshooter as their permanent manager, but rumours and trends in Norway are suggesting that the job is all but his, with many of his compatriots backing him to land the job despite fierce competition.

 

Solskjaer so far

 


Through his first 19 games in charge, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has won 14 games and drawn two, hauling his team to an against-all-odds victory to move past Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League and have the club in contention for a top-four finish.

 

The glut of the team are now performing to their true ability, with the system invoked by Solskjaer allowing more of the players to play in ways that suit them, such as giving Paul Pogba a more free-roam, playmaker role in midfield, and letting Anthony Martial dribble at defenders, terrifying them with his wicked footwork.

 

All of this combined has fans and pundits alike discussing how long it’s going to be before United give him the job permanently. As much as the Molde fans and team would like to have him back, this piece reveals that the team ushered him on to get the job, saying: “enjoy yourself, and don’t come back” – said in a ‘good luck’ manner.

 

So his countrymen are fully onboard with Solskjaer remaining in Manchester to continue his work on reviving one of the biggest clubs in the world. And, while frustrated Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino is still in the picture, Norwegian experts are billing a bet on him to remain in the job until the end of the season as a ‘bet without risk’ in this article, as well as heavily suggesting that he will go on to be named the permanent manager of Manchester United at odds of 1.63.

 

Is Solskjaer right for the job?

 


Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s showing so far indicates that he has what it takes to lead this team in the years to come. He didn’t build the team and many onlookers consider it to be quite weak in many areas – particularly in defence – but the Norwegian has been able to get the best out of them.

 

The problem that Solskjaer faces is the same that every Manchester United manager has faced since Sir Alex Ferguson and David Gill left their roles: getting Ed Woodward to buy the players they want and need. United’s transfer activity, conducted by Woodward, has been poor. For a manager to be able to build a foundation and progress the team, they need the right players to be able to strengthen the right areas.

 

Last season, Jose Mourinho pulled off a minor miracle to land second in the league with the defence he was given, so it didn’t come as a surprise when that same defence crumbled this season without the necessary reinforcements.

 

As this statement reads, Woodward claims that the club is looking at appointing someone in a director of football role, but given the corporate style in which this information was relayed, unfortunately, he will likely remain in charge of transfers for the foreseeable future.

 

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer looks to be the perfect manager for Manchester United, but without the correct backing in the transfer market, he may end up suffering the same fate as other post-Ferguson managers.