Ole Gunnar Solskjaer | W15 D2 L4

[charlenefan]

Earlier this season I did in a post to show how we were doing compared to the same fixtures last season (shock horror it wasn't good and only got worse)

v Leicester (h) 2-0 / 2-1 - N/A
v Brighton (a) 1-0 / 3-2 - N/A
v Spurs (h) 1-0 / 0-3 - -3
v Burnley (a) 0-1 / 0-2 - N/A
v Watford (a) 2-4 / 1-2 - N/A
v Wolves (h) 0-1 / 1-1 - +1 (using West Brom as an equivalent fixture)
v West Ham (a) 0-0 / 3-1 - -1
v Newcastle (h) 4-1 / 3-2 - N/A
v Chelsea (a) 1-0 / 2-2 - +1
v Everton (h) 4-0 / 2-1 - N/A
v Bournemouth (a) 0-2 / 1-2 - N/A
v Man City (a) 2-3 / 3-1 - -3
v Palace (h) 4-0 / 0-0 - -2
v Southampton 0-1 / 2-2 - -2
v Arsenal (h) 2-1 / 2-2 - -2
v Fulham (h) 3-0 / 4-1 - N/A (using Stoke as an equivalent fixture)
v Liverpool (a) 0-0 / 3-1 - -1

So under Mourinho we were 12 points down on the same fixtures last season. Now under Ole....

v Cardiff (a) 0-4 / 1-5 - N/A (using Swansea as an equivalent fixture)
v Huddersfield (h) 2-0 / 3-1 - N/A
v Bournemouth (h) 1-0 / 4-1 - N/A
v Newcastle (a) 1-0 / 0-2 - +3
v Spurs (a) 2-0 / 0-1 - +3
v Brighton (h) 1-0 / 2-1 - N/A
v Burnley (h) 2-2 / 2-2 - N/A
v Leicester (a) 2-2 / 0-1 - +2

So 8 points up on the same fixtures under Ole and now only 4 points down on the same fixtures overall. Next up is Fulham away which is the equivalent of the trip to Stoke last season where we drew, so 3 points Saturday will only get us nearer to levelling out points wise

 

[ArjenIsM3]

You want to sacrifice CL to make CL again?

Fact is, even if we lose against Chelsea, we can always regroup in the league. When Monaco, Liverpool and Roma have gone deep in the CL, I don't see why we can't with some luck. We should hope our losses don't come against PSG unless the second leg is a dead rubber and we have already sealed victory. Though of course, that isn't realistic and the most likely scenario is us losing to them.

Yes I do. Strange isn't it? I just don't think we've got a real chance of winning it this year. Would rather we make sure we get to try again next year with an improved squad that's capable of really challenging for it. The fact you're saying we need luck to "go deep" in the CL let alone to win it says enough for me. Say we beat PSG, get knocked out in the semis and because of our focus on the CL we drop to fifth in the league. Wouldn't you rather go out to PSG in the CL and finish 3rd or 4th in the league?

 

[TMDaines]

Yes I do. Strange isn't it? I just don't think we've got a real chance of winning it this year. Would rather we make sure we get to try again next year with an improved squad that's capable of really challenging for it. The fact you're saying we need luck to "go deep" in the CL let alone to win it says enough for me. Say we beat PSG, get knocked out in the semis and because of our focus on the CL we drop to fifth in the league. Wouldn't you rather go out to PSG in the CL and finish 3rd or 4th in the league?

Are you a Spurs fan?

 

[Yakuza_devils]

Hope I'm wrong, the last few games started to see us going back not able to string 3 passes together and our performance have dropped drastically from the brilliant attacking football when Ole took over.

Not sure what went wrong, player fatigue? Fitness? Motivation? Tactic?

Having said that it's still much better than Jose football.

 

[Kapardin]

Yes I do. Strange isn't it? I just don't think we've got a real chance of winning it this year. Would rather we make sure we get to try again next year with an improved squad that's capable of really challenging for it. The fact you're saying we need luck to "go deep" in the CL let alone to win it says enough for me. Say we beat PSG, get knocked out in the semis and because of our focus on the CL we drop to fifth in the league. Wouldn't you rather go out to PSG in the CL and finish 3rd or 4th in the league?

We aren't going to transform into prime Madrid in one summer. And luck isn't the resort of only weak teams. Even the CL winners need luck. Cup competitions are of that nature.

And there's no point finishing 3rd or 4th at the expense of CL because there is no guarantee of us doing any better next season either.

 

[Edgar Allan Pillow]

Yes I do. Strange isn't it? I just don't think we've got a real chance of winning it this year. Would rather we make sure we get to try again next year with an improved squad that's capable of really challenging for it. The fact you're saying we need luck to "go deep" in the CL let alone to win it says enough for me. Say we beat PSG, get knocked out in the semis and because of our focus on the CL we drop to fifth in the league. Wouldn't you rather go out to PSG in the CL and finish 3rd or 4th in the league?

I'd always take a CL run option. We may end up going all in PL and still not finish Top 4. It's a gamble either way and I think we have a good chance in this year's CL.

 

[ArjenIsM3]

Are you a Spurs fan?

We aren't going to transform into prime Madrid in one summer. And luck isn't the resort of only weak teams. Even the CL winners need luck. Cup competitions are of that nature.

And there's no point finishing 3rd or 4th at the expense of CL because there is no guarantee of us doing any better next season either.

Listen nobody wants to be in this situation but currently we're fifth. That's us in the EL again next season. I really don't want that to happen. So how's there no point in finishing 3rd or 4th? There's never any guarantee of us doing any better next season but the way things have been going lately I genuinely think we'll be a lot better next season if Ole gets to stay and we get some new players in to fill up the holes in our squad. I've come to terms with us not winning anything this season. I'd rather make sure we get to try again next season than throw all of our energy in the CL and watch us play in the EL next season.

 

[roonster09]

It wasn't very good performance but Leicester away is a tough fixture. Big clubs have struggled against them, few at their home and few at Leicester ground. So getting 3 points is a job very well done, especially with clean sheet


Leicester 0-1 ManUtd
Possession: 56%
Total shots/On target - 10/6

Leicester 1-2 Liverpool
Possession: 49%
Total shots/On target - 10/4

Leicester 0-2 Spurs
Possession: 58%
Total shots/On target - 7/2

Leicester 2-1 City
Possession: 66%
Total shots/On target - 11/4

Liverpool 1-1 Leicester
Possession: 72%
Total shots/On target - 10/3

Chelsea 0-1 Leicester
Possession: 72%
Total shots/On target - 17/5

Arsenal 3-1 Leicester
Possession: 69%
Total shots/On target - 19/6

Arsenal away is the only fixture Leicester lost easily, apart from that they were a tough team to play against, especially for bigger clubs.

 

[el3mel]

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.

At this moment when we're firing and most players are playing great, then the individual poor performance is clearly the problem of these players imo. Lukaku is an anomaly now in the style he plays well in comparison to his other teammates.

 

[Skills]

CL run any day. We beat PSG and it's all up in the air.

2 of the favourites (Liverpool and City) our two of our rivals, and even if they are better than us in these type of fixtures there's a decent chance we'll come out on top. Grudge matches are difficult to predict on the best of occasions.

 

[Di Maria's angel]

22 points in 8 games, 26 in the 17 before. Incredible, really.

I don't think our football has really been that much better than, say, last season. What we have is someone backing up our main striker i.e. Pogba and Rashford and a solid defense (Lindelof, Matic and Herrera). I'd say Ole's biggest achievement is slapping the world class out of Pogba - for the first time since we signed him, you can see why we signed him. To be brutally honest, we're nothing without Paul.

 

[beedoubleyou]

Honestly, some of you can't take any criticism of the team. You seriously think there has not been a downhil performances in last two games? The passes of the ball have been shambolic. You can see things creeping in to our play which I think are dangerous. Matic has been horrendus in last couple games, playing Lukaku and Sanchez has distrupted the attacking rythem. I would rather play Darmien or Dalot than Young. Also, lets not kid ourselves, I do not see one of our centrebacks as being good enough to be in a title winning side. .

Very confusing to understand what it is that you are trying to say.

So, there's been a downhill turn, but also the players aren't good enough in midfield, in attack and across the defense?

So then they were over performing?

It's all a bit of mess really.

 

[tonnas]

I believe if he gets us past PSG, that shouldn’t be an indicator that the board should not m bother with Pochettino. PSG’s best player will not be playing, so that makes them no stronger than a full strength Spurs side. I will like to see how United play against teams like City, Liverpool, Barcelona, Bayern and so on to analyze whether Ole can make us compete against the top side. Spurs which was the strongest team we faced absolutely hammered us in particular in the second half. I rather United be the team that is hammering opposition. Ole has done well in that regards against lesser opposition though.

Do you realise that apart from 9 wins /10 Ole didnt bring 1 player and he is using the team and quality he found. If he manages top 4 , a good cup run and a great performance vs PSG then he should be given the manager role and start building his team in the summer

 

[CM]

I'll be the first to admit I wasn't a fan of our second half performance yesterday (and even a few of the ones previous) but to give Ole his due, there's a grittiness to this team that many wouldn't have expected when he was first appointed. I remember plenty of posters worrying about us being too gung-ho when he got the job.

It's also worth remembering every team has performances like these. Spurs and Pochettino have had plenty, except they tend to start slower and peak in the second half.

 

[TMDaines]

Listen nobody wants to be in this situation but currently we're fifth. That's us in the EL again next season. I really don't want that to happen. So how's there no point in finishing 3rd or 4th? There's never any guarantee of us doing any better next season but the way things have been going lately I genuinely think we'll be a lot better next season if Ole gets to stay and we get some new players in to fill up the holes in our squad. I've come to terms with us not winning anything this season. I'd rather make sure we get to try again next season than throw all of our energy in the CL and watch us play in the EL next season.

I genuinely couldn't give a toss about qualifying for the CL, if we're not going to be bother to try to win it when we're still in it and in excellent form. It's highly unlikely that you'll go into a last 16 tie in the Champions League with a run of form that contains 9 wins out of 10, and possibly 10 out of 11, regardless of who we sign and who the manager is next season.

Being in the Champions League or not makes next to no difference for the acquisition of players and/or a manager for United, with their wealth, status, and top four being highly competitive in the PL. We saw this with the Mourinho, Pogba, Zlatan, Mkhi and Bailly transfer window.

 

[Gandalf Greyhame]

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.

I doubt even SAF with the '08 squad could go through all those fixtures unscathed.

 

[meamth]

When is the right time to announce Ole as the permanent one if things go exceptionally well?

During the season or at the end of this season?

 

[RepardReece]

When is the right time to announce Ole as the permanent one if things go exceptionally well?

During the season or at the end of this season?

End of the season. Even if he wins his next 10games on the trot we'll only announce that when the seasons over.

 

[Kapardin]

I genuinely couldn't give a toss about qualifying for the CL, if we're not going to be bother to try to win it when we're still in it and in excellent form. It's highly unlikely that you'll go into a last 16 tie in the Champions League with a run of form that contains 9 wins out of 10, and possibly 10 out of 11, regardless of who we sign and who the manager is next season.

Being in the Champions League or not makes next to no difference for the acquisition of players and/or a manager for United, with their wealth, status, and top four being highly competitive in the PL. We saw this with the Mourinho, Pogba, Zlatan, Mkhi and Bailly transfer window.

Another factor is that CL is basically a lottery. Real, Barca and Bayern all have weaknesses this season but may improve the next and become strong again. So we might actually face a greater chance of exiting the CL quickly next season if we draw one of them in the knockouts, or even get drawn into a tough group of death.

Point being, we can plan for the future, for sure, but we absolutely cannot think long term for the CL. Luck is required to reach the later stages and we may as well focus on doing that now. And then, who knows.

 

[meamth]

Another factor is that CL is basically a lottery. Real, Barca and Bayern all have weaknesses this season but may improve the next and become strong again. So we might actually face a greater chance of exiting the CL quickly next season if we draw one of them in the knockouts, or even get drawn into a tough group of death -- something like Barca, Bayern, Napoli and ourselves considering Bayern may not win the Bundesliga title this season.

Point being, we can plan for the future, for sure, but we absolutely cannot think long term for the CL. Luck is required to reach the later stages and we may as well focus on doing that now. And then, who knows.

Or next season we became strong ourselves like that 2007 season. The United resurgence next year with Ole. We can dream.

 

[George The Best]

When is the right time to announce Ole as the permanent one if things go exceptionally well?

During the season or at the end of this season?

Foolish and/or irresponsible to make any decision during the season imo. Nobody, that is currently employed, will throw their hat into the ring until the season is over. I think the Board are right to wait and make a judgement when it becomes clearer who might be interested other than Ole. No need to turn it into a one horse race at this stage.

 

[AJ10]

It wasn't very good performance but Leicester away is a tough fixture. Big clubs have struggled against them, few at their home and few at Leicester ground. So getting 3 points is a job very well done, especially with clean sheet


Leicester 0-1 ManUtd
Possession: 56%
Total shots/On target - 10/6

Leicester 1-2 Liverpool
Possession: 49%
Total shots/On target - 10/4

Leicester 0-2 Spurs
Possession: 58%
Total shots/On target - 7/2

Leicester 2-1 City
Possession: 66%
Total shots/On target - 11/4

Liverpool 1-1 Leicester
Possession: 72%
Total shots/On target - 10/3

Chelsea 0-1 Leicester
Possession: 72%
Total shots/On target - 17/5

Arsenal 3-1 Leicester
Possession: 69%
Total shots/On target - 19/6

Arsenal away is the only fixture Leicester lost easily, apart from that they were a tough team to play against, especially for bigger clubs.

They're really hard to play if you're a top team. In that arsenal game they should of had a pen and a red card for holding, so they were really unlucky in that game.

 

[meamth]

Foolish and/or irresponsible to make any decision during the season imo. Nobody, that is currently employed, will throw their hat into the ring until the season is over. I think the Board are right to wait and make a judgement when it becomes clearer who might be interested other than Ole. No need to turn it into a one horse race at this stage.

But it could steady the ship faster, finding transfer targets sooner. Don't you think?

End of the season. Even if he wins his next 10games on the trot we'll only announce that when the seasons over.

Why not during the season? we can plan for next season early. We have seen how Moyes failed to do anything when he was signed in the summer.

 

[Adam-Utd]

For all the moaners, ALL teams have a bad day.

I guarantee you fans are moaning on RAWK about their home draw with Leicester.

I guarantee you bluemoon are moaning about losing to Newcastle.

Chelsea got stuffed by Bournemouth 4-0, Arsenal are a schizophrenic team that you never know will turn up.

Tottenham are just scrapping wins by the skin of their teeth with Son in great form.

Yes we weren't at our best against Leicester but I didn't feel like we needed to be. We were pretty comfortable all match and had a clear gameplan to let them have the ball, as they're most dangerous on the counter.
Unfortunately Rashford was injured most the match, Sanchez and Lingard were both poor also, it happens.

The team have got a week to rest now and i'm sure we will have a better performance at Fulham.

 

[meamth]

For all the moaners, ALL teams have a bad day.

I guarantee you fans are moaning on RAWK about their home draw with Leicester.

I guarantee you bluemoon are moaning about losing to Newcastle.

Chelsea got stuffed by Bournemouth 4-0, Arsenal are a schizophrenic team that you never know will turn up.

Tottenham are just scrapping wins by the skin of their teeth with Son in great form.

Yes we weren't at our best against Leicester but I didn't feel like we needed to be. We were pretty comfortable all match and had a clear gameplan to let them have the ball, as they're most dangerous on the counter.
Unfortunately Rashford was injured most the match, Sanchez and Lingard were both poor also, it happens.

The team have got a week to rest now and i'm sure we will have a better performance at Fulham.

I think we can all agree that there is less sane supporters than the insane ones. I think you should be used to it by now and just ignore them.

 

[Bola]

I think the job is OGS' to lose. Let's get Feb out the way and if successful, offer him it permenantly.

I'm happy with all aspects of his tenure, bar two areas that I'd like to see more evidence of:
1) Be ruthless with under performers
2) Give youth a chance

Both are interrelated, but I'll expand on what I mean. On being ruthless we have an oversized squad, 'star' players who are not delivering, in addition to proven members of 'Deadwood FC' that are approaching contract expiry. Meanwhile we have at least 3, possibly 4 academy prospects that need to be brought into the senior squad, to at least take the 'fringe' squad places of the under performers. So far, OGS has done the bare minimum (at best) with youth opportunities and I feel his actions have not backed up his words.

OGS appears to have made some steps to being ruthless, with Valencia seemingly dropped and Fellani moved on. He has now given others a chance, but he should have seen enough to know the limitations of Jones, Lukaku and Mata*. Time to drop them and give the youngsters a chance.

If he does the above, then I'm 100% convinced he will be right for us.

* Darmian and Rojo are the other members of Deadwood FC, while Perreira is also playing his way into this team. Sanchez and Fred are also close to becoming members

 

[Slevs]

Incredible how they went from Leicester to Lyon that quickly. Lack of mentality will never be a factor with Ole.

If this was Game of Thrones, people would say they were time travelling and it's unreal. @RedSky

I like it that he watched the game. Was a good game too with Lyon missing millions of chances. He must have noticed Cavani's ability to receive the ball under pressure in the middle. Must get Lindeloff/other CB to stay tight to him and get the ball back.

 

[Adam-Utd]

I think we can all agree that there is less sane supporters than the insane ones. I think you should be used to it by now and just ignore them.

Yep. Some fans are very unrealistic and just expect us to blast every team 4/5-0 like football manager.

Football has never been that way, even under fergie we had poor performances + results but we'd often hit back with a strong win and go on a run to negate it.

 

[RedSky]

If this was Game of Thrones, people would say they were time travelling and it's unreal. @RedSky

What have I done?

 

[Ish]

Phelan’s hat would’ve gone perfectly with Guardiola’s scarf/coat combo today

That was a sight to behold.

 

[JoaquinJoaquin]

I do think the new manager bubble has burst. Recent performances like yesterday, Brighton, Burnley etc have indicated that. However it has been a huge plus point that we have managed to beat Arsenal and Spurs, which does prove that we can raise our game under Ole. For me, I think no decisions should be made until the end of the season. See how we get through March.

 

[Eli Zee]

Yes I do. Strange isn't it? I just don't think we've got a real chance of winning it this year. Would rather we make sure we get to try again next year with an improved squad that's capable of really challenging for it. The fact you're saying we need luck to "go deep" in the CL let alone to win it says enough for me. Say we beat PSG, get knocked out in the semis and because of our focus on the CL we drop to fifth in the league. Wouldn't you rather go out to PSG in the CL and finish 3rd or 4th in the league?

No guarantee we’ll finish 3rd or 4th just by losing to PSG on purpose

 

[ArjenIsM3]

No guarantee we’ll finish 3rd or 4th just by losing to PSG on purpose

Who said anything about losing on purpose? Tbh knowing now that Chelsea is a cup game I want us to go all out in the first leg. The second leg depends on the first. If we're in a good position to go through (first leg win) then fine, play our strongest team. If not, rotate and prioritize beating Arsenal (a direct top 4 competitor) a couple of days later. Maybe we still beat them having rotated, maybe not.

 

[tony54]

I do think the new manager bubble has burst. Recent performances like yesterday, Brighton, Burnley etc have indicated that. However it has been a huge plus point that we have managed to beat Arsenal and Spurs, which does prove that we can raise our game under Ole. For me, I think no decisions should be made until the end of the season. See how we get through March.

 

[Amadaeus]

Do you realise that apart from 9 wins /10 Ole didnt bring 1 player and he is using the team and quality he found. If he manages top 4 , a good cup run and a great performance vs PSG then he should be given the manager role and start building his team in the summer

Speaks volumes towards how poor a coach Mourinho was. After spending over half a billion on players, our squad shouldn’t be lacking quality players. It is for this reason that some fans are having doubts over Zidane because he just inherited a good team. United are not similar to that Madrid team, but our team is better than most give it credit for. Even though Ole is my second choice now, I m not that ready to say that he should be given the job over the likes of Pochettino if he is available. Ole though has manage to convince me that he is a better fit for United than a three time champion league winner or a tactical competent manager like Marco Rose.

 

[tony54]

I agree that the honeymoon period of having a new popular manager is wearing off and after the players upping their game in the last two months they are now reverting back to their natural level of fitness which for some is not high.
Whilst Ince is still trying to justify that anyone could have done what Olly has done, and there is some truth in that. But, I think his main impediment to maintain the levels we want are the owners and the CEO who don't know the first thing about football and are only in it for profit, not profit for the club but for there fat pockets. They could have bought a good midfielder this session, and should have. We will see what their intentions are at the next window but by missing the chance of getting a great player in at this moment, it lessens the probability of getting players of stature to want to come and play for a team with owners and executives with real ambition, other than their fat pockets.
Unlike other top teams our owners don't have the billions to throw about and this, whether one likes it it not is the real problem for man utd.

 

[SSSSnake]

This month will paint the true test for Ole. So many big games coming up! At least we're going into games knowing we can hurt the opposition.

 

[Jaae]

It is absolutely incredible that Ole has been thrown in at the deep end and is expected to perform miracles in order to 'prove he is worthy' of a permanent position.

He's come in mid season with morale at an all time low, a squad that is not his own, player fitness not where he'd want it... Are people for real in thinking that he now has to finish top four/win the FA Cup/beat PSG to prove himself?

That is not giving someone a chance. Giving a manager a chance is giving them a preseason with the squad to prepare, backing them in the summer transfer window, and having patience over two seasons to let them carry out their ideas. Ole has already shown he is worthy of being given a chance by dragging us back into contention for 4th in less than 2 months, being tactically flexible in beating strong sides away, creating a positive atmosphere around the club and getting individual players performing to a good level.

There are no guarantees in football. Not with Ole, not with Mourinho, and not with Pochettino. Ole has already shown that he deserves a actual chance going into next season. Let him make changes to the squad and have a preseason with them, then we can fairly access his suitability.

 

[AltiUn]

There's a small concern creeping its way into the room over these last few matches. Ole's done a very good job so far with results, however the way we're actually playing is suspect. We have spells of domination followed by other spells of forgetting how to play football again, we need to start being clinical because when we're missing easy chances we invite pressure onto ourselves. I do recognise we've had some very tough games over that period so it's understandable.

I do think a big part of that is due to the defence, in particular Young, Matic and whoever we have at LCB (typically Jones). While Matic looks better than under Mourinho he's still ghosted past like he's not even there which really hurts our defence, enough has been said about Young (bit of a mystery why Dalot isn't at least getting a sniff at the moment) and we don't have a single competent left-sided CB at the club, everyone's more comfortable on the right. If we could sort those issues out in the summer we'd look a hell of a lot stronger and our attack would have the freedom to try and pick apart teams without the worry that we could concede easy chances.

This next run of fixtures look absolutely brutal, I know people joke about OGS not having faced a real test (citing Arsenal/Tottenham) but for me the month we have coming up is the make or break. After this month I'll be able to say whether I think he should be our next full time manager. The fact that we've managed to close the gap on the top 4 is a pretty outstanding achievement on its own.

 

[TRUERED89]

His management of this game was terrible in every aspect today. We somehow ended up being much poorer in the second half despite the first half also being pathetic.

Judging from the games against Spurs, Brighton, Burnley and today he seems to have no clue on how to change a game tactically when it's running away from us. He's done fantastic up to now but these concerns are marks I'd have against him if deciding on whether he gets the job.

we cant win all 38 league games 5-0 playing fantasy Fifa football, we've won 9 out of 10 games, how many managers can really say they've done that in a new job? give Ole a DAMN break FFS