[ad_1]
The night of Wednesday 6 March 2019 will never be forgotten by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and the Manchester United players who achieved one of the best comebacks in the Champions League.
The city of romance was dyed red that night, it was the moment when Solskjaer’s rise from convenient caretaker to leading a cultural revolution was confirmed.
To quote Gary Neville when he spoke to Solskjaer at the Parc des Princes, just after United had completed their theory challenging the resurrection: “How long would you like to have your contract? What would you like to be your salary? And where would you like the statue?”
Tomorrow night United will return to Paris and 595 days later will be seen as an easy benchmark to test Solskjaer’s United progress, especially at a time when their future has been the source of much conjecture recently.
It’s fair to say that the statue is on hold right now. United’s stuttering start to the season eased a bit with a 4-1 win at Newcastle on Saturday, a match that easily produced the most comprehensive performance of the Premier League campaign to date.
But it will take more than a convincing win against a complacent Newcastle to completely erase the memories of a 6-1 loss to Tottenham at Old Trafford two weeks ago. Saturday night was a start, but Solskjaer will want to see that kind of repeat exhibition, starting in Paris.
This will be a very different trip to the French capital. For starters, this is the first of a six-game group campaign, so the pressure is not as intense as in March 2019, when a place in the quarterfinals was at stake and PSG had a 2-1 advantage 0. from the first leg at Old Trafford.
Tomorrow night’s defeat won’t be terminal, but it will be a good barometer of exactly where United is in Europe this year, given that PSG were contesting the Champions League final less than two months ago.
It is also inevitable that this match is a time to look back on Solskjaer’s reign, to judge progress so far and what may lie ahead, but we must avoid quick judgments if the result does not go like United on Tuesday.
The Norwegian still has unanswered questions, especially given the home losses to Crystal Palace and Tottenham this season, but there has been progress. Even if he left tomorrow, he would leave a legacy, having cleared some of the team’s parasites, though not all, and slashed the median age.
The other problem with comparisons to the 3-1 victory at PSG during Solskjaer’s temporary reign is the nature of that victory. United took advantage of luck throughout and Solskjaer misdirected the team selection, with Eric Bailly’s spotty career as a makeshift right-back before injury ended his early night.
During the second half, United’s plan was to hold on and wait for a decisive attack, which they managed to make in the closing seconds, with VAR coming to their rescue after Diogo Dalot shot an arm.
The scenes at the end were lighthearted as Marcus Rashford scored from the spot and it was a night to remember, but it wasn’t a performance that hinted at a big plan from Solskjaer. There was a significant element of luck involved.
United could easily play better than Tuesday night and lose. At least now there is a clear pattern to the side and a higher quality in attack. Romelu Lukaku, the hero of the two goals in March 2019, is gone and United’s attack is now more collective, fueled by the brilliance of Bruno Fernandes.
The defense has not particularly improved, but United are looking better than they did in Solskjaer’s honeymoon period, despite impressive results in those first three months.
Progress may not have come as fast as expected, but progress has still been made. Whatever the outcome on Tuesday night, snap judgments shouldn’t alter that.
[ad_2]
