Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had to go

At Watford missed two penalties and then they shot four times past David de Gea to rub salt on the wounds of Manchester United, whose campaign in this season is turning out to be yet another nightmare, while for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer – time seemed to run fast as far as his role as a coach was concerned. The Manchester United hierarchy kept the faith in him despite the failures – but still, he had to go and that was the only way the Red Devils could find one solution for many problems.

 Manchester United have confirmed the departure of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and said they are looking to appoint an interim manager to the end of the season.

Solskjær’s fate was sealed at an emergency board meeting on Saturday night after the team’s 4-1 defeat at Watford. He gave an emotional interview to the club on Sunday in which he said, “I’m going to leave by the front door because I think everyone knows I’ve given everything for this club.”

Eyes welling with tears as he discussed Michael Carrick taking temporary charge while an interim manager is sought, he said, “I’m becoming emotional now because he’s top, they’ll be fine. I’ll watch them and support them.”

United’s statement announcing his exit said, “Ole will always be a legend at Manchester United and it is with regret that we have reached this difficult decision. While the past few weeks have been disappointing, they should not obscure all the work he has done over the past three years to rebuild the foundations for long-term success.

“Ole leaves with our sincerest thanks for his tireless efforts as manager and our very best wishes for the future. His place in the club’s history will always be secure, not just for his story as a player, but as a great man and a manager who gave us many great moments. He will forever be welcome back at Old Trafford as part of the Manchester United family.

“Michael Carrick will now take charge of the team for forthcoming games, while the club looks to appoint an interim manager to the end of the season.”

When Ole was appointed as the coach of Manchester United, the Red Devils’ relationship with Jose Mourinho fell apart and he came to repair the “damage” done by Mourinho – well, the start was satisfactory, but gradually the wheels started to came off and this season the patience certainly took its toll with Ole.

It all started unravelling for Solskjaer after the 4-2 defeat at the hands of Leicester City on October 16 and after the disgraceful 5-0 hammering at home to Liverpool increased those concerns.

Reports suggest, “The players were left unimpressed with Solskjaer's half-time message with United already 4-0 down, as his team talk spoke of merely ‘keeping a clean sheet in the second half.’

Senior members of the squad began to question Solskjaer's tactics while there was confusion as to why club captain Harry Maguire - who was at fault for at least one Leicester goal - had been picked to start, despite not being fully fit having been rushed back from injury.

It is not the first time Solskjaer's decisions have left players bemused – it happened before!

It was tough to decipher, not only for the players but for the experts and fans as well of which tactics Ole was exploiting on the field.

Players like Donny van de Beek and eagerly awaited prodigy Jadon Sancho were almost history in Ole’s plan while the switching of formations without an impact on the pitch – left each and everyone furious.

Reports suggested, “that players were not given explanations as to why they were being left out of the team, and Solskjaer found it difficult to make hard calls on big decisions.”

“The final call on one player receiving treatment for an injury problem, for example, was left to director of football negotiations, Matt Judge, while there was a lack of communication between Solskjaer and the board over his plans for the summer and who would be free to leave the club on loan.”

“He had not even made a decision on who was going to be his number one goalkeeper when the team reported back for pre-season, with Dean Henderson's struggles in recovering from Covid-19 eventually deciding it for him.”

“Then there was the issue with the coaching standards and concern from some players over a lack of 'edge' in sessions.”

Sources say that Cristiano Ronaldo was so furious that he was in his car less than 10 minutes after the final whistle of the match against Manchester City.

#OleOut kept on trending on social media, but Manchester United think tank did not bother to search for a new coach whereas Antonio Conte was available.

After the dismal showing at Vicarage Road on Saturday confirmed that there was no way back. An emergency meeting on Saturday night between Joel Glazer and Woodward brought the end of Ole’s regime – it should have happened long ago and now it seems that it’s too late.

Rumours suggest, either Mauricio Pochettino or Zinedine Zidane might too over, but no confirmations yet.

No matter which coach Manchester United appoint, he would have to repair a lot of damages done by Ole in the last couple of years. At the moment, Manchester United would require a courageous and dynamic coach, which is hard to find right at this moment. 

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 22/11/2021 Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had to go

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Faisal Caesar