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If Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s statement that cup competitions should not be Manchester United’s indicator was a nice psychological move that paid dividends in Milan on Thursday. Needing victory at the San Siro, his team duly delivered to eliminate Stefano Pioli’s side and advance to the quarter-finals of the Europa League. Next United will travel to Leicester on Sunday for their other realistic route to trophies: the FA Cup.
Solskjær’s outlook changed markedly in sudden death competitions before United’s trip to Italy. Rather than claiming a win it would be an important and crucial step in the development of his team, which has been his stance, United were to be judged primarily on the performance and position of the Premier League.
Before facing Leicester, Solskjær repeated again how glory in the cup “can sometimes hide” deep faults in a club, but then broadened his thinking. “We feel like we’re on an upward trajectory, we’re going places, and I feel like winning a trophy could be a catalyst, not an invisible layer. [covering problems]. He would give us a kick and hopefully we can take the next step and reach a final. But the improvement: you see most of it in the league position and how the consistency of our performances is getting better and better. But we measure ourselves in trophies and everyone wants to celebrate a trophy ”.
The reason why Solskjær has cut the knockout competitions can be found in their four defeats in the semi-finals. Last season, United lost to Chelsea in the FA Cup, the Carabao Cup to Manchester City and in the Europa League to Sevilla. This season, City once again eliminated United in the Carabao Cup.
In all of these setbacks, United were just a brilliant football buzz catching the wrong side of a result that could have gone well, making it easy for some to label them “bottlers.” However, this is a simplistic reading that ignores the club mess Solskjær entered when he replaced José Mourinho in December 2018, and how last year’s first full campaign was a vital stage in his efforts to rebuild United. .
However, since his players notice the public statements of a coach, Solskjær may well have used the preparations for the Milan and Leicester games to ease the pressure on them. In a sense, the 48-year-old’s words are irrelevant. This is United and the expectation is to claim a trophy every season, regardless of what the coach says.
Another, however, is that when Solskjær arrives in Leicester, he expects a victory that may ultimately be the next step towards achieving what Sir Alex Ferguson took the longest to do: claiming a first honor as United manager. In case they are FA Cup champions for the 13th time or the Europa League a second time (they will face Granada next), Solskjær will have needed two full seasons against Ferguson’s three to open their account.
In private, you must be desperate to do it. Solskjær often cites the 2006 League Cup triumph as the catalyst for Patrice Evra and Nemanja Vidic’s careers at United, each coming that season, and for Ferguson’s third and final great team that would claim another Cup of La Liga, three Premier League titles and the Champions League in 2009..
What Solskjær and his team require is a first success, to convince themselves that they are the winners. The process to turn United into true title contenders is underway, they are second in the table, but restoring them to the top, with the 14-point gulf to City with nine games to play (to the latter’s eight), means a 21st The title almost certainly won’t come this season.
The victory of the FA Cup or Europa League (or both) in this period would calm critics and demonstrate the takeoff of the Solskjær era, just as Ferguson’s first silver medal did in 1990 with the FA’s final victory. Cup over Crystal Palace.
“The FA Cup has always been a huge trophy,” he says. “I’ve been lucky enough to win it a couple of times myself [as a United striker] And growing up as a kid was always the last game of the season, after the league was over. It was the great game. So it’s a great game for us [Leicester].
“The history of the FA Cup and the history of Manchester United in the FA Cup is great and for me it is one of the most iconic trophies you can win. Especially climbing those steps at Wembley, it’s something I saw on TV and something I’ve also been lucky to do. So we really want to go all the way. “
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Understandably wary of the challenge Brendan Rodgers’ team will pose, however, “Leicester deserves to be mentioned as one of the top six. Because of the way they have developed the club, the way that after winning the league [in 2015-16] have solidified a spot in and around the top six with Brendan [Rodgers]. They have a fantastic way of playing, the style of football is also nice to look at, they have quality players and they have players who can score goals ”.
Solskjær’s hope is that United will have the quality to surpass Leicester and finish the season with the first honor of his tenure.
