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Louis van Gaal still says he should have seen his dismissal at Manchester United six months before it happened, and while Ole Gunnar Solskjaer isn’t there yet, the similarities are striking. Two managers struggling with the suspicion that they weren’t backed by the club when it mattered, an inconsistent team struggling to quell criticism and another coach sitting in the shadows.
For Van Gaal, it was José Mourinho. For Solskjaer, he is Mauricio Pochettino. Van Gaal’s time ended with Mourinho assuming command; Solskjaer is still fighting to make sure he doesn’t suffer the same fate.
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The victory at Everton on Saturday was the most recent example of how the Norwegian manager evoked a result when he needed it most, but there is no escaping the fact that after seven games, United are 14th in the table. Already this season, they have lost to Crystal Palace and defeated Paris Saint-Germain. They have suffered terrible losses at home to Tottenham and Arsenal, but they also dismantled Newcastle and RB Leipzig.
Inconsistency has haunted Solskjaer’s spell at Old Trafford and as they approach their second anniversary, United remain a difficult team to work for. Privately, United have gone out of their way to emphasize that Solskjaer retains the faith of Vice President Ed Woodward and the board, but ultimately it’s up to Woodward and the owners, the Glazers, to figure out whether the good outweighs the bad.
Solskjaer is holding his own as Man United’s manager despite an incredibly difficult and inconsistent start to the season. Clive Brunskill / Getty Images
Van Gaal remains convinced that by January 2016 Woodward had already decided to replace him with Mourinho. Consultations were conducted through intermediaries to ensure that neither Woodward nor Mourinho got their hands dirty while another technician remained in charge. It also gave United a plausible denial even as Mourinho’s agent, Jorge Mendes, was strategically leaking information in the background to increase pressure.
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Pochettino and his allies are different, already avoiding opportunities to move the ship. His November 2 appearance on Sky’s Monday Night Football was timely: it had been in the pipeline for nearly a year and came 24 hours after Man United lost 1-0 at home to Arsenal, but stopped at sure not to comment directly on United or Solskjaer.
Faced with an open question about whether he would like to return to the Premier League, Pochettino gave an open answer: “I am not going to close any doors. I am waiting to feel what is the right project for us.” what is the right way to go “.
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Sources have told ESPN that outside agents sought more information about Pochettino’s plans for the future in late September ahead of a tough streak of matches for United that included matches against Tottenham, PSG, Chelsea, RB Leipzig, Arsenal and Everton. Now, through that spell, his streak of games after the international break appears to offer Solskjaer more opportunities to stabilize the campaign.
Meanwhile, Pochettino has let the right people know that he would seize the opportunity to coach United, but also that it is not his only option. He has also distanced himself from comments that, as a former Espanyol player, he could never manage Barcelona, where new manager Ronald Koeman is already under pressure. There have also been questions about Zinedine Zidane at Real Madrid and Thomas Tuchel at PSG.
Pochettino also remains the most likely candidate for Manchester City, who are huge fans of the 48-year-old if Pep Guardiola does not sign a contract extension that expires in June. All of which raises the possibility that United will miss Pochettino a second time.
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Pochettino isn’t Woodward’s only candidate to be United’s next manager should he need him. The United executive has told his close associates that he is a fan of RB Leipzig’s Tuchel and Julian Nagelsmann, who is also on City’s radar. Massimiliano Allegri, who left Juventus in 2019, has made it known that he would be interested if the opportunity arises, although he is further down the list.
There is an acceptance that United’s performances against Arsenal and Istanbul Basaksehir, in particular, were not good enough, but leading figures have pointed to the results against PSG and Leipzig, as well as the 14-game unbeaten streak that ended. last season’s Premier League campaign. as proof that Solskjaer is the right man.
Woodward and Solskjaer are still in regular contact and have maintained a good working relationship despite a tense summer. Fundamentally, Solskjaer has also retained the backing of the older players; Sources have told ESPN that the reaction to the victory at Goodison Park on Saturday was more defiant than celebratory after a week of intense criticism. Some staunch Solskjaer supporters within the team feared another demoralizing defeat would have forced Woodward to make a decision.
Solskjaer feels that he would not be vulnerable at all if the summer transfer window had been more productive. The signature signing, £ 40 million Ajax midfielder Donny van de Beek, strengthened a position he did not think was a priority. The right and center back that he wanted did not arrive; Instead, United hired a 33-year-old forward in Edinson Cavani in a free transfer and two teenage wingers, Facundo Pellistri of Peñarol and Amad Diallo Traore of Atalanta: Pellistri is not playing yet and Diallo will not arrive until January, despite costing 21 million euros plus 20 million euros in accessories.
Solskjaer and his coaching staff share the feeling that while United’s senior team has grown stronger, the overall quality of the first team has remained the same, making it difficult to close the gap with Liverpool and Manchester City. Solskjaer has expressed his frustration to Woodward, but his mood at Carrington has remained positive and staff do not walk the halls in fear as they did during the final agony of the Mourinho era.
When the time came for United to fire Mourinho and Van Gaal, the writing was on the wall long before the news broke. Solskjaer is beginning to feel some of the same pressures, but Woodward still hasn’t taken aim.
Source: espn.co.uk
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