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The Athletic’s Michael Cox believes that one of the Manchester United manager’s main weaknesses (47) has been totally ignored by experts and the media. Now he questions the Norwegian’s ability to lift the great club.
After the loss to Tottenham this weekend, Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær has been under pressure. Television experts have long claimed that the Norwegian needs better players to work with, but the transfer window still ended in disappointment.
United secured several players on the final day of the window, but many have subsequently pointed out that United failed to strengthen the parts of the team that were needed.
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Veteran forward Edinson Cavani and left-back Alex Telles walked through the door, while the Old Trafford club also secured several promising youngsters.
– What does Solskjær contribute?
There’s been a lot of talk about United and transfers in recent months, but tactics expert Michael Cox at The Athletic thinks it will be too easy to blame a bad team. He thinks Solskjær is part of United’s problem.
Cox has taken a closer look at United’s first three league games this season and especially the 1-6 loss to Tottenham recently and noted that defensive play has been useless. Cox believes United’s defenders simply don’t function as a unit and that there isn’t much “protection to get” from midfield players. Something that he believes also contradicts what he believes the 47-year-old Norwegian has actually been quite good at early in his career as a United manager.
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– If United can no longer defend themselves deeply in solid form, then one may wonder what does Solskjær really bring to the table? Cox wonders in his column.
The Athletic expert further states that there is a great contradiction in the way the Norwegian is presented as a coach in the Premier League club. Solskjær is often noted to understand the club and its offensive traditions. After all, he did play several seasons under the leadership of Sir Alex Ferguson when he was active.
“Underdog football”
This is also often reinforced by television pundits who are largely former Manchester United players and former teammates of Solskjær, Cox believes.
The contradiction, however, is that the United manager during his first 18 months as a club manager has shown instead that he is a fox at making plans on how to defend himself for a good result against supposed better resistance. Like when United beat PSG in the Champions League or when they stopped Liverpool at Old Trafford last season.
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Cox points to the PSG match, which perhaps was the reason Solskjær got the United job permanently, and notes that tactically in that match he showed that he strongly prefers careful defensive football, which is suitable for a ” loser”. .
– If that’s what United wanted, then they got exactly what they wanted. Solskjær has shown that he is very good at laying out a good defensive, powerful and counter-attack plan against quality opponents, but it seems that he is completely inadequate to find a solution against teams that defend themselves more deeply, Cox believes.
– This is something that has been totally overlooked during your time as a manager at United. Often because it’s Solskjær’s former teammates who largely set the agenda for what’s important through their roles as television experts, Cox believes.
– No ability to improve players
Furthermore, the Athletic expert notes that there has been no shortage of newcomers in United’s kit after the 47-year-old Norwegian became boss at Old Trafford.
However, you see a trend that worries you.
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A common feature of United’s three big signings last summer – Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Harry Maguire and Daniel James – is that they were at their best in the opening weeks of the season, before falling to the same level as the rest of the season. team, believes Cox.
– The same can happen with Bruno Fernandes, although the form he showed early in his United career might have been difficult to maintain anyway. Buying good players helps, but if they don’t play with a good coach, then they don’t stay well for long, is the Athletic columnist’s verdict.
So Cox wonders if this is why there is constant talk of new and better players in Manchester United circles.
– Manchester United may need to fill the stable with new players, because the manager has shown no ability to improve the ones he has, writes Cox.
On par with van Gaal and Moyes
The expert concludes his column by noting that it is basically somewhat surprising that Solskjær is leading United, considering that before he became a manager there, he had been relegated with Cardiff and won some titles in Norway.
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Figures show that Solskjær in his first full season as United manager only captured 66 points, the same as Louis van Gaal did in 2015-16 and was fired. It is also part of history that the Dutchman won the FA Cup that season.
66 points is also just two more than United kidnapped during the David Moyes season, where the Scotsman was fired even before the season ended.
This season, Solskjær and his United have three points after the first three games. There have been losses for both Crystal Palace and Tottenham. After the national team break, they play away against Newcastle.
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