Man United players must have a title-winning mentality

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has said he wants his players to believe that they can win the Premier League title this season.

United are eight points behind leader Liverpool ahead of Thursday’s trip to Sheffield United and Solskjaer is hopeful that he can mount a serious challenge for the first time since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013.

“I would be disappointed if the players didn’t think we can present a challenge,” Solskjaer said at a news conference on Wednesday.

“For the moment, anything goes in the league. I feel like we are improving, but we have to improve a lot to take the next step as well.”

The trip to Bramall Lane is the start of a grueling career for United, who face six games in 16 days over Christmas and New Years. Manchester City and Liverpool have dominated the Premier League for the past three years, but Solskjaer believes the gap with the chasing group has closed.

“This is a great streak of games for us,” Solskjaer said. “After the [Aston] Villa’s game on New Years Day, we have a little break in the league. This period is going to be vital.

“I think this season is going to be very unpredictable and with ups and downs. Whoever finds consistency and energy will have a better chance than in recent seasons, because there have been some teams out of control.

“Even though we have six games in less than 16 days, we still have to watch one, then one and then one because if you take your eyes off the ball you will lose points quickly in games where you hope to win more.

After taking on Sheffield United, Solskjaer’s side play Leeds, Everton, Leicester and Wolves before hosting Aston Villa at Old Trafford on New Years Day.

Solskjaer plans to rotate his squad to navigate the hectic race, but he also warned his players that they will need to be “mentally prepared.”

“With regard to six games in 15 or 16 days, it’s probably difficult to perform at the highest level in all the games,” Solskjaer said.

“That’s why we have to be good at rotating, resting and finding moments to give them a chance in games.

“These days you don’t have many places to go, so they are recovering faster, the players have stricter rules and protocols to follow, so I think they should be able to deal with it physically if they are mentally prepared for it.” . “