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Publication date: Saturday, September 19, 2020 9:45 AM
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer admitted that Manchester United must look in the mirror after a humiliating loss to Crystal Palace in their first game of the new season.
Having finished the Norwegian’s first full season on the bench with three cup semi-finals and a third place in the Premier League, the 2020/21 campaign got off to an alarming start at an empty Old Trafford.
UnitedAndros Townsend’s response to the opening opener was poor, with the familiar face of Wilfried Zaha compounding matters after video assistant referee Jon Moss judged David De Gea off his line when he saved Jordan Ayew’s penalty.
Zaha shot home to retake the penalty and the former United player finished impressively a 3-1 win at Old Trafford, where newcomer Donny van de Beek had temporarily reduced the deficit.
“Yes, you can see that we are short and they deserved the points,” Solskjaer said. “They were sharper than us on challenges, tackles.
“We started slowly and that had a domino effect for the rest of the game when they got the first goal.
“We had a long season last season and we didn’t finish until August 16, and we haven’t had enough preparation time to be sharper.
“Of course we have worked hard with those who have been here, there have been some players who have been away in international matches.
“But Roy (Hodgson) said they had four friendlies and this is their third competitive game, which is a little different than ours against Aston Villa last week.”
‘Always looking to improve’
Executive Vice President Ed Woodward was at Old Trafford for defeat on a day when he spoke of the need to be “responsible in the use of resources during this time of extraordinary difficulty.”
But the performance only highlighted the need to add to the Van de Beek acquisition before the October 5 deadline, to the dismay of fans at the lack of signings palpable online in the absence of supporters present.
“We can play a lot better than today,” Solskjaer said. “If you look at the players we have on the field and on the bench and not here today, I think we all need to look inward first.
“We need to look at ourselves and we know we have to perform better.
“On the other hand, we always, always seek to improve if something is available at the right price.
“We always want to strengthen ourselves, but I think that today we can all look in the mirror.”
Solskjaer did not believe that Palace should receive a handball penalty against Victor Lindelof, but understood why it was retaken, even if the United manager called the decision “tough”.
But the 1999 treble hero accepted his team as second-best on Saturday night when the Eagles began a season in the top flight with consecutive victories for the first time in their history.
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