Solksjaer, Worthy Of An Extension?

Ole Gunnar Solksjaer will always be a Manchester United legend even if he manages to relegate United as a manager. He is a legend not only for the Champions League-winning goal in 1999 but also for his contribution to the success of the club in his years there. He recently signed a contract extension as a Manchester United manager and some are less than pleased while others are calling for him to be backed and supported. As a manager, I feel he is a work in progress or the hard truth is that he is just not good enough to ensure that we return to being a club that won big trophies and at the very least, challenged for them regularly. The following are the areas that I feel he needs to improve on.

Myth on Attacking Play

Solksjaer deserves credit for ensuring that there is a good atmosphere at the club and among players. But it is a myth that he is setting the team up to play attacking football or has got the team to play the “United Way”. Last season, we had seven 0-0 draws and that is too much for a team known for its attacking ethos. His predecessor, Jose Mourinho is regularly credited for being a cautious, defensive manager but he didn’t achieve that feat. In ways, Solksjaer’s approach isn’t too far distant from Mourinho’s. The emphasis in several of the games was not conceding and hoping to nick a goal; he achieved in the first part at least and he has almost always spoken of his pleasure at the way the team has played after such results. It is also reflected in the way he sets the team up to play in the dreaded double-pivot formation with 2 hard-working players that lack creativity at the base of the midfield. Our attacking play is patchy and disjointed. We are reliant on a moment of magic from one of our players to score, we rarely see good pieces of attacking interplay or build up between players that have led to a goal. They are there but it is not seen as often.

In-Game Management

His in-game management is one of the most frustrating aspects to watch. He doesn’t have a pulse on the game and is reactionary in his substitutions. It gives an impression that he only relies on 13-14 players in the squad and is very reluctant to introduce someone outside of that group, out of fear of compromising a result. He introduces substitutions too late in the game for them to affect a change. Some games are meant to be seen out by defending well, some by keeping hold of possession while others need to be seen off by scoring more. It is perfectly fine to misread the situation every once in a while but not so frequently that you can predict what will happen next. He needs to improve in this aspect because this is what sets aside a good manager from a top manager.

Lack of Faith In The Squad

On the surface, he says the right things to give an impression that he relies on everyone but his utilisation of players is poor. Certain players are used to death, ran to the ground while others are just sat on the bench getting ring rusty. When you are forced to use players that are rarely used, they will not be able to perform at the level you expect them to because they have hardly played much. This gives an impression that he has a lack of faith in some of these players. If that is the case, get rid of them and have players in the squad that he can really count on.

Coaching

This point is linked to the team’s attacking play. What kind of coaching do these players receive if we keep looking clueless and disjointed in our attacking play? What happens when one of our main creative players is marked out? On the pitch, it looks like we have no solutions if one of our main creative players is marked out or has a poor game. Where is the Plan B and C? Then the set pieces, if we get them, it’s as good as not getting them. We hardly pose a threat from set-pieces. These are things you can work on the training ground but yet time and again, we come up with a damp squib. I really miss a player that can take a direct free-kick or corner kick and know we stand a chance to score from it. At the opposite end of the pitch, why are we continually conceding goals from set pieces? Again this is something that the team can work on the training ground but it looks like it isn’t. Are they on the training ground just to laugh and joke with one another? Individual player quality apart from Luke Shaw hasn’t improved either. I have this nagging feeling that if some of our much-criticised players played for Pep Guardiola or Jurgen Klopp, we will be sat here complimenting the qualities of this player instead of berating them.

Conclusion

He has just hired a set-piece coach and I hope that helps us with our set-pieces. We have made a quality signing at right-winger. It looks like there are other quality signings in store for us as well.  That will certainly improve the quality and mentality of the squad if they can settle in well and perform as expected. I cannot disagree that this is a make or break season for Solksjaer. There are steps he needs to take quickly to be considered a top manager capable of winning major trophies. Right now, he is not there yet. The onus is on him to prove that he is there. I will always support the club and I hope he is successful. The ball is now in his court and that of the club to prove it to us on the pitch.