Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has revealed how he has restored team spirit in the Manchester United dressing room as he faces up to a key summer in the club’s recent history.
An impressive run of 15 games unbeaten, dating back to January, has lifted United into strong contention for a top-four finish.
United are also in the hunt for the FA Cup and Europa League, although Solskjaer agrees with former team mate Gary Neville that they are still a long way from the finished article.
But the general mood around Old Trafford – on and off the pitch – has certainly improved in the past six months.
And Solskjaer explained how he rooted out dissatisfaction in the ranks ahead of Saturday’s home game with Bournemouth.
“Everything is a process and every day you show your true colours and values – what kind of person you are – and for me, trying to create this culture, you have a certain DNA and identity when you play for Man United or work for Man United,” he said.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re in the canteen or laundry or in admin or on the pitch, you’ve got to be a certain type of character for me.
“I’m very old school in my values. I’m not going to rant and rave. I’d rather open the door or close the door. Either in or out.
“Players who want to sign, if they don’t feel right as a person you close the door. Players, who are inside who don’t feel right and don’t want to contribute to the team ethos and have the betterment of the team at heart, then you open the door and let them leave.
“It’s a constant process. Whatever you do every day, that will decide if you’re going to be part of Man United or not.
“I hope and believe I will always stay true to my principles and values of that.”
Solskjaer was strong with Man Utd exits
While at pains not to identify individuals, the United boss made the controversial decisions to allow Romelu Lukaku, Matteo Darmian and Alexis Sanchez to leave the club last summer, while Ashley Young exited in January.
Other big-name players left on loan – including Chris Smalling and Marcos Rojo.
And Solskjaer agreed with pundit Neville that there is a lot of work for him to do this summer if his club is to compete with Liverpool and Manchester City at the top of the table.
“Gary is right in a lot of things he says and of course we cannot think we’re there,” Solskjaer said.
“If you look at the table, we’re nowhere near where we should be.
“Consistency has to be improved and we still have to improve on many aspects of the game.
“I don’t know how many points we’re behind the top two but Gary’s right – there’s definitely not going to be any complacency and thinking, ‘We’ve cracked it’ because we’ve got so much to do.
Piece in today's @theipaper on #MUFC playing hardball for Jadon Sancho. With a firing strikeforce and rivals out of the running, United's £50m valuation is an attempt to take the lead and drive Sancho's value down, and it could well work.@iPaperSporthttps://t.co/na9PGPHgde
— Peter Hall (@PeteHall86) July 3, 2020
“It’s an enjoyable journey. We can see improvements but, yes, we need to make one or two – or more – very good decisions. It’s going to be an important summer, definitely.”
All eyes on top four
Although Solskjaer has named an unchanged team for the last two league outings, he is likely to ring the changes today.
And the Reds boss fully expects the fight for a top-four finish to go until the final round of fixtures – when United visit Leicester and Chelsea host Wolves.
“The last round is going to be vital,” he said.
“You’ve got Chelsea versus Wolverhampton and us against Leicester – so there might be a three-point advantage for us or for Leicester and it’s still an important game.
“I can’t see the difference between us and Leicester being a lot more than three points either way, the same with Chelsea and Wolverhampton.
“So it’s looking exciting, it’s a short space of time. So many games so lots of things can happen but yes I think it will go down to the last game.”
Follow i sport on Facebook for more Manchester United news, interviews and features
More on Man Utd
- The making of Marcus Rashford: the Man Utd star who never forgot his roots
- New leader: How Fernandes made an instant impact – and lifted all those around him
- Why United are prepared to play the long-game in pursuit of Sancho
- Kevin Garside: Well done to Chadwick for reminding us all to be kind
- 5 players Man Utd could sign this summer
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/2NVxCP8
Post a Comment