Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been tasked with the unenviable task of leading Manchester United to a top four finish and Champions League football. However, his team’s form is not as impressive as it once was, and injuries are mounting as they struggle to keep pace in the league.
The ole gunnar solskjaer win percentage man utd is a worrying trend for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. United have been going through some tough times, with mounting injuries and a slump in form.
10:30 a.m. Eastern Time
Dawson, Rob Correspondent
MANCHESTER, United Kingdom — Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been at Manchester United long enough to know that a crisis is seldom more than one game away, and following Aston Villa’s 1-0 victory at Old Trafford on Saturday, the Norwegian has now lost three of his last four games.
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Following a Carabao Cup third-round loss to West Ham on Wednesday and a shock setback against Young Boys in the Champions League on Sept. 14, the club suffered their first Premier League defeat of the season, courtesy to Kortney Hause’s 88th-minute goal and an even later penalty miss by Bruno Fernandes.
It’s still September, but if United can put together a run of form between now and the October internationals, the last ten days will be swiftly forgotten. But, for the time being, things aren’t looking good.
“I felt we were very excellent on the transition, attacked fast, and then when we were up there, the final choice, the execution, the quality wasn’t good enough to score goals,” Solskjaer remarked after a tumultuous 90 minutes. “It was a terrific game for the neutral since the game ebbed and flowed. Unfortunately, we concede a goal on the corner. Even though we had 60 percent possession and 30 shots, we didn’t have enough control. The corner kick towards the end, as well as one of Bruno’s rare misses, harmed us.”
When you’re in control at Old Trafford, the atmosphere can shift fast. “I’m extremely pleased that we’ve begun the Premier League season on the front foot, and I truly couldn’t ask for much more from our start to the Premier League campaign at Old Trafford,” Solskjaer said in his programme notes before of the game.
It was a case of well-known last remarks.
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It seemed like United would have another miserable day until Hause headed in Emiliano Buendia’s corner at the near post two minutes from time, making an already bad outcome look much worse.
Solskjaer was furious, and it wasn’t just because the goal came from a set piece. “You can see the discrepancies, the VAR (video assistance referee), and the decision-making,” he said. “As the header goes in, [Ollie] Watkins is obviously blocking David [De Gea]. The linesman performs well, informing VAR of the ruling, but they reject it, resulting in yet another set of poor choices.”
Despite the acquisition of Raphael Varane from Real Madrid in the summer, United have now gone eight Premier League home games without a clean sheet for the first time since the 1971-72 season. The injury to both Luke Shaw and Harry Maguire didn’t assist the situation, but the warning signals were already there.
In the first half, Matt Targett missed a sitter at the back post, and De Gea had to make a superb stop from Watkins after Maguire gave him a poor back-pass. United had 28 efforts on goal, and although Emiliano Martinez made a few excellent stops, he didn’t have to play his heart out to give Villa their first victory at Old Trafford since December 2009. It was their first victory against United in the Premier League in 46 tries.
In the 92nd minute, Bruno Fernandes missed a penalty kick. Getty Images/Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside
United’s greatest opportunity came in stoppage time, when Mike Dean awarded a penalty to Fernandes after Edinson Cavani’s header struck Hause in the hand. Instead of Cristiano Ronaldo, Fernandes had responsibility for salvaging a point, but blazed his effort high into the Stretford End.
It’s pointless for Solskjaer to complain that his side doesn’t receive many penalties if they’re going to miss the ones they do earn, even if he later claimed that Fernandes was scared off by Villa players crowding the penalty spot before the kick.
“Bruno is such a fantastic penalty taker that you’d be willing to put your house on the line for him,” Solskjaer remarked. “He will give his all every day of the week for the club and the team, but things don’t always go your way. The boundary between paradise and hell is razor-thin. I don’t like how they crammed the referee and the penalty spot together. They received what they were looking for.”
It was United’s last attempt, and the 55th shot they’d taken in the previous two games without scoring. Due to injuries to Shaw and Maguire, Solskjaer was only able to put on Cavani as his one offensive substitution; Anthony Martial and Jadon Sancho were both left on the bench.
What matters now for Solskjaer is what comes next. If they can beat Villarreal on Wednesday and Everton on Saturday, the last week and a half will seem like a blip on the radar for a club still trying to find its feet. Continue to struggle, though, and the pressure will grow ahead of a stretch of games that already seem to be difficult.
After playing Everton, United’s next four league games are against Leicester, Liverpool, Tottenham, and Manchester City. Solskjaer has a track record of producing excellent results when he needs them the most, but any club would be lucky to get through such a schedule unharmed.
United’s manager and the team are at a crossroads.
Man United have been in a slump for the past few months. The mounting injuries, which have been a problem for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, are a worrying trend that needs to be addressed. Reference: ole gunnar solskjaer relegation.
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